Since the death of Paul Allen in 2018, we wonder when his sister Jody, who now manages his fortune, will sell the Portland Trail Blazers in the NBA and the Seattle Seahawks in the NFL.
This is because the former co-founder of Microsoft had been involved since 2010 in the “Giving Pledge” campaign by Warren Buffett and Bill Gates, which encouraged the wealthiest people in the United States to give most of their their money for philanthropic purposes. Through his donations, Paul Allen wished “save animal species, restore the health of the oceans and prevent epidemics before it is too late”.
After his death, his sister Jody had thus sold two apartments in Manhattan for 101 million dollars, a yacht at 90 million dollars and a collection of works of art which for its part reached 1.5 billion dollars!
One could therefore think that the sister of Paul Allen would take advantage of the explosion in the value of sports franchises to continue his philanthropic work. Especially since she didn’t have to look far since Phil Knight, the boss of Nike, and Alan Smolinisky, the co-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, had joined forces to offer her two billion dollars in order to put the hand on the Oregon NBA club…
Repeated and progressive offers
Except that the next day, Jody Allen replied to Phil Knight that the Blazers were simply not for sale.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Phil Knight and Alan Smolinisky have however returned to the charge several times, increasing their offer by promising to keep the franchise in Portland, to renovate the Moda Center and to revitalize the entire neighborhood around it. Except that Jody Allen doesn’t want to hear anything. No counter-offer.
So why does Paul Allen’s sister stubbornly refuse to sell, when it was obviously her brother’s will? Hard to say, Adam Silver recalling that such a sale can take time.
“I understood that at some point the team will be sold” thus explained the commissioner. “I have no idea of the precise moment. […] But at some point, it will be for sale. This is an extremely complex property, and even though it’s been several years, these things take time. »
As the Wall Street Journal notes, Jody Allen’s refusal may be linked to obligations related to the construction and renovation of club halls and stadiums. A referendum thus forces, for example, to donate 10% of the sale of the Seattle Seahawks to the State of Washington if it takes place less than 25 years after the issue of the first bonds linked to the construction of Lumen Field, the stadium of the team. The constraint ends on May 21, 2024.
