Ownership options so far

[Mr. Scot]

Charlotte city officials have stated that there are at least six Panthers ownership bids in place.  Some sources say there are actually more, but outside of a lot of talk from Felix Sabates, only a very small amount of real information has come out regarding the potential owners.

Here are the options we've heard about so far.  FYI: Some of them are still, to this point, unconfirmed.

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Felix Sabates Group

The group is known to include wealthy Charlotte auto dealer Felix Sabates, also currently a minority owner of the Charlotte Hornets, but not as the majority owner; who the majority owner would be - and frankly who all else is involved - has been the subject of a lot of unconfirmed rumor and speculation; one rumored majority owner would be NASCAR's Marcus Smith (son of Bruton) but again, nothing on that front has been confirmed; the group is also said to feature two current minority owners of the Panthers but no names have been specified; "conversations" have been said to have been had with NASCAR drivers Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch, Jeff Gordon and Dale Earnhardt Jr along with NASCAR team owner (and Sabates business partner) Chip Ganassi; musician Kid Rock is also rumored to be part of this bid as well, also unconfirmed; Sabates has repeatedly voiced that a new stadium will be necessary to keep the Panthers profitable; also worth noting that Sabates is a close friend of Ron Rivera (which could be good or bad); Fox 46 reporter Chuck Howard listed Bruton Smith as part of Sabates' group; if true, Smith would be a definite candidate to be the majority owner

Felix Sabates Biography at Bentley Charlotte

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Ben Navarro

South Carolina businessman based in Charleston; former executive with finance giant Citigroup ; currently the head of a debt collection firm called Sherman Financial Group; runs a nonprofit education initiative called Meeting Street Schools catering to "underresourced" students which is said to use innovative ideas and education models; father was a football coach at the college level (no major schools); worked his way through college by starting his own business selling student discount cards to local businesses; an online video speech highlights that he's not in favor of rewarding underachievement; described by Jourdan Rodrigue to be the only confirmed potential owner so far who could actually buy the team on his own without needing an ownership group

Ben Navarro Bio at Sherman Financial Group

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Frank Fertitta

Former owner (along with brother Lorenzo) of the Ultimate Fighting Championship; the Fertitta brothers built the UFC from a struggling promotion to a billion dollar business via their Zuffa brand, then sold it for a reported 4.2 billion some time back; during their UFC days, brother Lorenzo tended to be the public face of the business while Frank stayed in the background; uncertain if Lorenzo would be part of the bid; used 500 million of the UFC sale money to start Fertitta Capital, an investment firm; would be required to divest himself of his holdings in Station Casinos in order to purchase an NFL team; cousin Tilman Fertitta owns the NBA's Houston Rockets; it's been speculated that Fertitta would use UFC style marketing to promote the Panthers; that could mean a big change from the image Jerry Richardson fostered with the team

Frank Fertitta on WIkipedia

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Paul Tudor Jones

Hedge fund manager said to currently reside in Greenwich, Connecticut; his firm, Tudor Group Investments is said to manage nearly 18 billion in assets; his personal net worth is reported to be near 5 billion; probably the least known bid at this point (outside of anonymous bidders); near as I can tell, he's only been mentioned in passing by The Observer and NFL Network analyst Ian Rapoport; apparently was known to have an association with disgraced Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein; has distanced himself from Weinstein since the scandal but the NFL may have some issues given the Jerry Richardson situation; back in 1987, Jones was the subject of a PBS documentary called "Trader" whose final cut he disliked so much he purchased all the film copies and burned them; it can, however, be found online

Paul Tudor Jones' Success Story on Investopedia

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Ed DeBartolo Jr

Former 49ers owner; team won multiple Super Bowls under his guidance and were considered a model franchise, though all of that occurred in the pre-salary cap era; was forced to divest himself from the 49ers due to a gambling related scandal and felony conviction in 1998; was also at one time accused of sexual assault by a cocktail waitress; denied any wrongdoing and no charges were filed but DeBartolo was reported to have made a payoff of $200,000 to the alleged victim; prior scandals, especially one involving sexual assault, might hinder him from getting NFL approval; however, given that he was inducted into The Pro Football Hall of Fame only two years ago, there might be some indication that the NFL is ready to forgive his prior indiscretions; has spoken previously of wanting to buy the Panthers but it's unknown if he's actually made a bid; given the family dynamics, Panthers-49ers games with him as owner could be...interesting

Ed DeBartolo Jr Pro Football Hall of Fame Profile

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Sean "Diddy" Combs

Music mogul has talked extensively about wanting to buy the Panthers; still unconfirmed to date that Diddy has an actual investment group or any sort of bid in place; doesn't have the net worth on his own to write the kind of check it would take to even just be a majority owner without pretty much selling everything he has; prior involvement with possible shootings and a sexual harassment allegation and lawsuit that happened less that a year ago make it highly unlikely that the NFL would favor his bid ; many take his assertion that he plans to bid on the team as a publicity stunt or a statement about racial equality in the NFL

Washington Post Profile of Sean Diddy Combs

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David Tepper

 

Another hedge fund manager; currently a minority (5%) owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers. from whom he would obviously have to divest; Mike Garafolo notes this is the path that took Jimmy Haslam to ownership of the Browns (I'd have preferred a better example); highly successful, with a net worth of 11 billion per Mike Garafolo; that's supported by Forbes magazine, who calls Tepper "arguably the greatest hedge fund manager of his generation"; Carnegie-Mellon University's School of Business is named after him; would be the second person on the list besides Ben Navarro with the financial wherewithal to buy the team on his own; grew up in a Jewish family; could be expected to follow similar business practices as the Steelers since he grew up in Pittsburgh and has had a chance to see the team from the inside ; could also potentially steal a front office guy like Omar Khan

Tepper Profile in New York Magazine

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Wittenberg Family Trust

Apparently located in Maryland; reported by local news station WCCB via their accounting firm; report says the "trust primary" (whose name was not given) is "a longtime football enthusiast" and has "strong ties to Walter Payton" and his family, whose inspiration they list as the sole reason for wanting to buy the Panthers; I can't find much of anything on the trust - not even so much as a name for who runs it - so we may have to wait to hear more; updating, local business reporter Katie Peralta set a mass email was sent out falsely claiming that this organization's bid for the Panthers was accepted; this may be a hoax

WCCB: Firm says letter of interest submitted in Panthers sale

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So who should you root for?

• Want the team to build a fancy new stadium and have heavy NASCAR tie-ins?  Also want someone that'll heavily back Ron Rivera?  Felix Sabates is your man.
• Hoping the team will hold players, coaches and staff to high standards and demand the best of everyone?  You'd likely prefer Ben Navarro become the new owner.
• Tired of the "family friendly" gameday atmosphere and the team avoiding "bad boy" players?  Former UFC owner Frank Fertitta is probably who you wanna look to (skimpier cheerleader uniforms may be in play with him in ownership as well).
• Believe that someone who's got experience at winning Super Bowls is the best option?  The only guy who can make that claim is Ed DeBartolo. He's got five Lombardi trophies to his name.
• Think the team should take more of a social justice stand in the community? Diddy has expressed a belief in that too (this choice also works if you're a fan of Colin Kaepernick).
• Looking for a team that's run like the Steelers, and possibly even run by former Steelers front office people?  The 11 billion dollar man David Tepper is your ideal owner.
• Want to go into next season with absolutely no idea what's going to happen?  Then pull for Paul Tudor Jones, cause I got nothin.
• Wittenberg Family Trust?  Ditto?  Other than mention of ties to Walter Payton, cant't find a thing.

Feel free to take your pick...

 

[t96]

I'm curious if things are actually moving but being kept under wraps and some day a report will come out that JR has agreed to sell it to someone and they'll just be waiting on league approval.

[NeederNodder]

At the end Disney buys the team and we get Wakandan themed color-rush unis

[Kevin Greene]

20 minutes ago, Mr. Scot said:

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Ed DeBartolo Jr

Former 49ers owner; team won multiple Super Bowls under his guidance; the 49ers were considered a model franchise, though all of that occurred in the pre-salary cap era; was forced to divest himself from the 49ers due to a gambling related scandal in 1998; was also at one time accused of sexual assault for which he denied any wrongdoing; no charges were filed

This piece of shyt is a convicted felon and never, I repeat never, should be allowed to own an NFL Franchise. 

https://www.sfgate.com/politics/article/DeBartolo-Guilty-of-Felony-1-million-fine-2-2986872.php

Debartolo had no skill as an owner other than in the pre-salary cap era he spent more money to stock the 49ers roster than other owners did.

fug this POS.

[Mr. Scot]

I did a little research on the sale of the Bills to try and frame what's going on with the Panthers sale.  Here's some of what I found.

• Ralph Wilson's heirs put the team up for sale in May of 2014 using Morgan Stanley as their broker
• A total of sixty non-disclosure agreements were signed by potential buyers who expressed an interest in the team
• When the time came for actual bids to be made, there were only three, and one (Trump) reportedly backed out shortly thereafter
• The fanbase was angered when it was leaned that one of the bidders (Jon Bon Jovi) despite promising to keep the Bills in Buffalo, commissioned a feasibility study for Toronto
• Morgan Stanley actually ended up extended the bidding period due to lack of serious activity.  Forbes magazine at that point called the team sale process "a circus".
• In the end, there was really only one serious option, the Pegulas.  They wound up owning the team and, at least so far, things seem to be looking up.
• The team sold in early September, approximately four months after the initial offering, for over 1.1 billion

Searching "Buffalo Bills sale timeline" is where I found a lot of this info if you wanna look for yourselves.

[Mr. Scot]

5 minutes ago, Kevin Greene said:

This piece of shyt is a convicted felon and never, I repeat never, should be allowed to own an NFL Franchise. 

https://www.sfgate.com/politics/article/DeBartolo-Guilty-of-Felony-1-million-fine-2-2986872.php

Debartolo had no skill as an owner other than in the pre-salary cap era he spent more money to stock the 49ers roster than other owners did.

fug this POS.

Something tells me you and Thomas96 are gonna disagree on this point.

[Kevin Greene]

1 minute ago, Mr. Scot said:

Something tells me you and Thomas96 are gonna disagree on this point.

Everything I stated is truth.

It's inconceivable to me that our NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell rewrote the history books and just welcomed Debartolo into the NFL HOF. Perfect illustration of what a crooked sonofabitch Goodell actually is.

[Kevin Greene]

20 years from now Jerry Richardson  might be eligible and elected to the NFL HOF having never been "convicted" of anything while in control of the Panthers. Debartolo was a felon as an owner, tied to gambling, forced to abandon his ownership of the 49ers only to be reinstated by Goodell.

[GRWatcher]

4 minutes ago, Kevin Greene said:

Everything I stated is truth.

It's inconceivable to me that our NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell rewrote the history books and just welcomed Debartolo into the NFL HOF. Perfect illustration of what a crooked sonofabitch Goodell actually is.

When it comes to the Hall Of Fame inductees they don't seem to take anything outside of their football careers into account. Drug addict LT is a prime example.

[Mr. Scot]

DeBartolo isn't my favorite choice (that's Navarro at the moment) but his inclusion in the Hall of Fame could very well signal that the NFL plans to allow him to bid on the Panthers if he chooses to do so.

DeBartolo and Richardson would have, I imagine, some level of familiarity given that DeBartolo was one of the owners who approved Richardson's expansion bid.  They would also have been attending owner's meetings together for the first three or four years of the Panthers.

How familiar or friendly are they really?  No idea.

I suppose they could compare notes over their respective sexual misconduct accusations

[Kevin Greene]

7 minutes ago, GRWatcher said:

When it comes to the Hall Of Fame inductees they don't seem to take anything outside of their football careers into account. Drug addict LT is a prime example.

I hear ya, LT wasn't kicked out of the NFL, Debartolo was.

[Mr. Scot]

9 minutes ago, GRWatcher said:

When it comes to the Hall Of Fame inductees they don't seem to take anything outside of their football careers into account. Drug addict LT is a prime example.

To be fair, a lot of those scandals happened after guys were already in the Hall of Fame (OJ, for example). DeBartolo's was a long time ago.

Scandal was also reported to have possibly delayed Michael Irvin's HOF entry.  If you ever watch his intro speech, he basically spends most of it describing himself as a great big POS.

[DamnItJake!]

Guess my $200 worth of gift card and some rolled up pennies didn't make it through the bid process :(

[t96]

31 minutes ago, Kevin Greene said:

I hear ya, LT wasn't kicked out of the NFL, Debartolo was.

No he wasn't.