How Much Does it Cost to Buy an NFL Team?

A look at the costs of purchasing an NFL team, including the price of the franchise, facilities, and players.

Introduction

In order to purchase an NFL team, there are a few steps that must first be completed. The would-be owner must show that he or she has the finances in place to not only buy the team, but also to support it financially for years to come. In addition, the NFL requires that all potential owners be interviewed and approved by a vote of three-fourths of the league’s 32 owners.

The price tag for an NFL team can vary wildly depending on a number of factors, such as the team’s recent success (or lack thereof), its market size, and the overall health of the league. For example, the Buffalo Bills were sold for $1.4 billion in 2014, while the Carolina Panthers went for $2.2 billion just two years later.

Forbes Magazine releases an annual list of the most valuable NFL teams and their estimated worths. As of 2019, the most valuable team in the NFL is the Dallas Cowboys, who are worth an estimated $5 billion.

Factors that Affect the Price of an NFL Team

The cost of an NFL team can vary depending on a number of factors. Some of these factors include the team’s performance, the value of the franchise, the market the team is in, and the stadium the team plays in. Let’s take a closer look at each of these factors.

The Value of the Franchise

Several factors play into the overall value of an NFL team. The most important factor is the market size of the city in which the team is located. Other important factors include the team’s recent performance, stadium capacity, and waiting list for season tickets.

The value of an NFL franchise has been on the rise in recent years. In 2018, the average value of an NFL team was $2.86 billion, a 23% increase from 2017. The New England Patriots are currently the most valuable franchise in the league, worth an estimated $3.7 billion. The least valuable franchise is the Cleveland Browns, worth an estimated $1.95 billion.

The Value of the Stadium

Stadiums are a very important part of the NFL. Not only do they provide a place for the team to play their home games, but they also generate revenue through concessions, advertising, and luxury suites. The value of a stadium can vary greatly from team to team. For example, the Dallas Cowboys’ stadium is worth an estimated $1.2 billion, while the Jacksonville Jaguars’ stadium is only worth $560 million.

The Value of the TV Rights

The NFL television rights are the most valuable in all of sports. In 2011, the NFL signed new nine-year contracts with NBC, CBS, and FOX, valued at a combined $27 billion. This equates to about $3 billion per year, or $1.1 billion per team. The lion’s share of this money goes to the owners of the teams.

This revenue is divided equally among all 32 teams, regardless of market size or how well the team performs on the field. It is a huge source of revenue for NFL teams and has a direct impact on the value of the franchises.

Recent Sales of NFL Teams

In the past decade, there have been several NFL teams that have been sold. The most recent sale was the Carolina Panthers, who were sold for $2.2 billion. The previous owner, Jerry Richardson, put the team up for sale in 2017 after allegations of sexual and racial misconduct.

The Buffalo Bills

The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL), as a member club of the league’s American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team plays their home games at New Era Field in Orchard Park, New York. The Bills are the only NFL team that plays their home games in the state of New York. The Bills conduct summer training camp at St. John Fisher College in Pittsford, New York, an eastern suburb of Rochester.

The franchise was founded in 1960 as a charter member of the American Football League (AFL). The team began to play their home games at War Memorial Stadium in 1961. The Bills won two consecutive AFL championships in 1964 and 1965, but the club has yet to win a championship since the merger with the NFL in 1970. They are also the only team to lose four consecutive Super Bowls . The group’s original owner was Ralph Wilson from 1959 to his death in 2014. Following his death, Teresa Brooks became the first woman to assume principal ownership of an NFL franchise.

The Miami Dolphins

The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. The Dolphins compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league’s American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team plays its home games at Hard Rock Stadium in the northern suburb of Miami Gardens, Florida. The Dolphins are the oldest professional sports franchise in the Deep South and the oldest franchise in the AFC East. With a majority held by Stephen M. Ross, and Ross’s Ctrl SEO company, they are one of three NFL teams to be held by their principal owner, with Robert Kraft owning the New England Patriots and Jerry Jones owning the Dallas Cowboys being the other two.

In 1965, an ownership group led by Joe Robbie and Danny Thomas was granted an NFL expansion franchise for Miami. The team became the Miami Dolphins and began play in 1966 as an AFC expansion team. They lost Super Bowl VI to Dallas 24–3, but made appearances in Super Bowl VII and VIII, losing both games to the champion Washington Redskins. During open-feel smyrna wedding dresses tryouts for Super Bowl IX in 1975 at Tulane Stadium, New Orleans guests were treated to a sneak preview of Detroit’s then-newly unveiled Pontiac Silverdome resting atop giant trailers; this was over two years before that stadium’s scheduled completion date, and six years before Silverdome was actually used for professional football games. The team reached an agreement with Hollywood Productions (an affiliate of Gulf+Western which owned Universal Studios Florida at that time) during that same season for construction of a theme park attraction inside Universal Studios Florida based on their top-rated 1977 television miniseries about their perfect 1972 season; closed permanently after only two seasons due to poor attendance despite very positive reviews from both guests and critics alike (it was replaced with E.T.: Adventure), substantial changes were made to Blue Sky Kingdom prior to its grand opening featuring Hanna-Barbera characters instead as part of Cartoon World which opened on July 4th 1990 (the original attraction’s scripts, props & sets remained until 2003 when Blue Sky Kingdom finally reopened with an all-new updated ride system & storyline as part of their 100th Anniversary celebration); this is still considered by many experts & historians as one of if not THE most ill-conceived theme park advertising campaign ever conceived let alone executed (not surprisingly given how controversial then-Universal president Sidney Sheinberg was during his tenure there from 1974 until his retirement in 1995) as neither Dolphins owner Joe Robbie nor head coach Don Shula gave their permission for this ill-fated project to move forward despite being told multiple times about these plans by then-NBC vice president Dick Ebersol who greenlit & overseen production of that miniseries (ironically Ebersol would go on to purchase that same network’s Sunday Night Football package from ABC Sports nearly 20 years later).

The Minnesota Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Vikings joined the National Football League (NFL) as an expansion team in 1960, and first took the field for the 1961 season. The team competes in the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. It is currently worth an estimated $2.4 billion, according to Forbes.

Conclusion

Based on the recent sales of the Buffalo Bills and Carolina Panthers, the average cost of an NFL team is approximately $1.4 billion. However, the Actual cost will depend on a number of factors, such as the team’s operating income, market size, and stadium financing.