NFL owners have approved the $9.612bn record sale of the Seattle Seahawks, the reigning Super Bowl champions, to a group led by billionaire Vinod Khosla.
The deal needed support from at least 24 of the 32 owners and is currently the second highest amount paid for a franchise in North American sports history.
The estate of Paul G. Allen, which inherited the team after the Microsoft co-founder died in 2018, agreed terms with the Khosla family on 11 July after a search for a new owner.
The approved sale surpasses the $6.05bn the Washington Commanders fetched in 2023. The NBA's Los Angeles Lakers were sold for $10bn in 2025 and are currently in the process of changing ownership again for a reported $12.5bn.
"We are honoured to be entrusted as the next stewards of the Seattle Seahawks. How often do you get to buy a franchise that just won the Super Bowl?" said Khosla.
"We are incredibly lucky and humbled by this gift, I would say, from the Allen trust."
"We look forward to building on the winning legacy Paul Allen created and to earning the trust of the Seahawks organisation and fans everywhere."
Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, Khosla, who will have to relinquish a minority stake in the San Francisco 49ers as part of the agreement, added: "The task ahead is actually pretty simple – keep the winning streak alive, get another Super Bowl.
"Our approach is generally going to be long-term focused, that's our inclination always. So, keep winning, take a long-term approach, and learn a lot. We don't know enough, and the other owners have been incredibly welcoming and willing to teach us, so we'll learn a lot.
"We'll learn from management and see what they are recommending."
Khosla, 71, co-founded US technology company Sun Microsystems and founded the venture capital firm Khosla Ventures. His net worth is $13.2bn, according to Forbes. , external
Former owner Allen saved the Seahawks from relocating to Southern California when he bought the team from Ken Behring in 1997.
His sister, Jody Allen, took control of the Seahawks and the NBA's Portland Trail Blazers as chair of both teams after her brother's death, with a directive to eventually sell both and donate the proceeds to charity.
In the 29 seasons under Paul or Jody Allen, the Seahawks made the play-offs 17 times and won two of the four Super Bowls they contested.
