A vote on whether or not to allow private equity firms to acquire stakes in NFL franchises has been delayed until later this year by existing owners, according to a report by Bloomberg citing Kansas City Chiefs boss Clark Hunt.
The decision means a delay to a potential influx of investors and new cash to the league, which has established a committee of five current owners to consider private equity involvement in the game.
According to Hunt, one of the five committee members, a model for PE investment has yet to be finalised although the league is likely to vet and approve a selection of private equity firms as potential buyers of minority stakes in teams.
The report quotes Hunt as saying at the NFL owners meeting in Orlando that: “We’ve made a great deal of progress.”
The league could eventually see as many as eight minority stakes made available to private equity investors, one NFL team executive said last month, with the likes of RedBird Capital Partners, Arctos Partners LP and Ares Management Corp, who have all made investments in teams in other sport, all expected to be interested.
