Entertainment media mogul Byron Allen has announced that he will be bidding to become the first Black owner of a National Football League (NFL) team.
According to Bloomberg, Allen, the owner of Entertainment Studios, discussed the possibility of becoming an NFL owner. He stated that the commissioner of the league, Roger Goodell, and the owner of the New England Patriots, Robert Kraft, approached him several years ago about placing a bid to purchase a team.
“NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft came to me in November of 2019 and asked me to take a good look at buying an NFL team,” Allen, chairman and CEO at Allen Media Group, said in a written statement about his interest in the pending sale of the Denver Broncos. “And after serious consideration, I strongly believe I can help effectuate positive changes throughout the league. And for that reason, I will be making a bid for the Denver Broncos.”
The push to get a Black owner of an NFL team has been a topic of discussion over the past several years. That has intensified after a bombshell lawsuit was filed last week by former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores
against the National Football League (NFL) for racial discrimination.Allen isn’t the first Black man to be mentioned as a possible owner of the Denver Broncos franchise, which, according to reports dating back to last year, revealed that the franchise will be up for sale this year.
The Denver Broncos may hit the market in 2022 after what the team says will be an “orderly determination of
ownership” which could include the Bowlen family selling the team. The franchise could sell for as much as $4 billion.In September, it was reported that hip-hop billionaire Jay-Z was reportedly eyeing a $4 billion deal to become the first Black NFL owner of the Denver Broncos. Last month, Black billionaire Robert Smith also emerged as a possible bidder for the franchise.