At the beginning of this week, Walmart heir, Rob Walton, was said to have bought the Denver Broncos for $4.65 billion.
In the announcement, Walton said that Mellody Hobson, who is a member of the Walton-Penner Group, would be one of the owners, as well. This means that Hobson will be the first Black woman to a participant in a NFL ownership group.
“We are excited to announce that Mellody Hobson, Co-CEO of Aerial Investments, has agreed to join our ownership group. She currently serves as the Chair of the Board of Starbucks Corporation and is a director at JP Morgan Chase. We know she will bring strategic acumen and leadership perspective to our team,” said Walton.
In 1984, Pat Bowlen bought the Broncos. In 2019, he died, and the Pat Bowlen Trust gained ownership of the franchise. In February, the trust stated that they were interested in selling the club.
The purchase is now awaiting approval from the NFL’s finance committee, and at the minimum, three-fourths of the league’s owners. That means that 24 out of the 32 owners must give their stamp of approval.
