As Seahawks Prepare for Super Bowl, Franchise Sale Looms Amid Soaring NFL Valuations
Twelve years to the day after the Seattle Seahawks delivered a 43-8 beatdown of the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII, the franchise once again finds itself on the sport’s biggest stage-this time facing the New England Patriots with another Lombardi Trophy on the line.
But even as the Seahawks chase another championship, major off-the-field news is brewing. According to reports, the franchise is expected to be sold this offseason, marking a potential seismic shift in ownership more than seven years after the passing of Paul Allen.
Since Allen’s death, the team has been held by the Paul G. Allen Living Trust, with his sister Jody Allen overseeing operations in accordance with his will.
Now, ownership through a trust isn’t unusual in the NFL. In fact, it’s fairly standard practice.
From Tom Benson passing the New Orleans Saints to his wife Gayle, to Pat Bowlen’s succession plan in Denver, and even Lamar Hunt’s use of trusts to hand the Kansas City Chiefs down to his children, the league has seen this playbook before. The structure itself isn’t the issue.
What is raising eyebrows, however, is a reported lack of a designated “controlling owner” for the Seahawks-something the NFL requires of all franchises. According to a Wall Street Journal report, that absence may have contributed to the league levying a $5 million fine against the team. It’s not just about legal structure anymore; the league appears to be signaling that it wants clarity-and perhaps change.
Whether that pressure is coming from the league office or from fellow owners behind closed doors, the timing of a potential sale makes a lot of financial sense. NFL franchise valuations are at an all-time high, and the Seahawks are no exception.
Much of that spike in value traces back to the 2020 collective bargaining agreement (CBA) and the lucrative broadcast deals that followed. The 2020 CBA marked the second straight round of negotiations where owners came out ahead financially. And while the agreement calls for roughly a 50-50 revenue split between owners and players, there’s a big difference in how that money gets distributed.
Players-both current and retired-share their portion across thousands of individuals, factoring in pensions, limited health insurance, and post-career benefits. Owners, on the other hand, divide their share among a much smaller group. That imbalance has helped fuel the rapid appreciation in franchise values.
Let’s talk numbers. Since the 2011 CBA was enacted, NFL team values have risen an average of 13.7% annually.
But the real explosion came after 2021. From 2011 to 2021, the average yearly increase sat at 12.8%.
Since 2021? That number has jumped to a staggering 19.6% per year.
That kind of growth turns NFL teams into not just trophies, but blue-chip investments.
Of course, no financial trend lasts forever. The current CBA is already at its halfway point, and there’s no guarantee the next round of negotiations will be as favorable to ownership. The players, armed with more data, more leverage, and more awareness of their value, could push for a bigger slice of the pie next time around.
Broadcast contracts are another variable. Right now, the NFL dominates television ratings like no other league. But media landscapes can shift, and the next round of broadcast rights negotiations could look very different depending on how streaming, tech partnerships, and viewer habits evolve.
So yes, there’s a case for holding onto the team and seeing if valuations climb even higher. But there’s also a strong argument for striking while the iron is white-hot. With the Seahawks' value reportedly having surged more than 150% since Paul Allen’s passing, the potential return on investment is enormous.
Add in the reported pressure from the league, the fine, the lack of a controlling owner, and the uncertainty looming on the horizon with the CBA and media rights-and it becomes clear why a sale now would be more than just a business decision. It might be the most logical play on the board.
For now, though, the Seahawks have more pressing matters at hand. There’s a Super Bowl to win. But once the confetti settles-win or lose-Seattle’s future could look very different, both on the field and in the owner’s box.