Seahawks sale process begins less
than 2 weeks after winning Super Bowl, Paul Allen's estate says
[February 19, 2026]
By ANDREW DESTIN
SEATTLE (AP) — The Seattle Seahawks are going up for sale in
accordance with the wishes of late team owner Paul Allen.
Allen's estate announced Wednesday that it has begun the process of
selling the team, which is coming off its second Super Bowl victory
in franchise history. The NFL did not immediately respond to a
request for comment from The Associated Press, nor did Allen’s
estate have anything further to add beyond its brief statement, it
said.
Ahead of the Super Bowl, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell commended
Allen’s estate on its time owning the Seahawks.
“They’re in the Super Bowl, and I think from that standpoint they’ve
done a really important job in the context of the trust and the
execution of that,” Goodell said. “But eventually the team will need
to be sold in accordance with that. That will be Jody’s decision for
when she does that, and we will be supportive of that.”
Investment bank Allen & Company and law firm Latham & Watkins will
lead the sales process, which is estimated to continue through the
offseason. NFL owners must then ratify a final purchase agreement.
The estate said the sale is consistent with Allen’s directive to
eventually sell his sports holdings and direct all estate proceeds
to philanthropy.
The Seahawks have been in the Allen family since 1997, when Paul
Allen bought the team for $194 million from then-owner Ken Behring.
Allen was critical in keeping the Seahawks in Seattle, which is
where the team is expected to remain after the sale is finalized.
The Seahawks have a lease at Lumen Field that runs through 2032 with
three 10-year options.
Since Allen, co-founder of Microsoft, died in 2018 from
complications of non-Hodgkin lymphoma at 65, the Seahawks and the
NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers have been owned by his sister, Jody.
The estate agreed in September to sell the Trail Blazers to an
investment group led by Carolina Hurricanes owner Tom Dundon. The
Trail Blazers will remain in Portland as part of the deal, which
could be completed this spring.
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The last NFL team to be sold was the Washington
Commanders in 2023. A group led by Josh Harris that includes Magic
Johnson bought the team from longtime owner Dan Snyder and his
family for a record $6.05 billion.
It already has been an offseason of change for the Seahawks less
than two weeks removed from their Super Bowl victory over the New
England Patriots.
The Las Vegas Raiders plucked away offensive coordinator Klint
Kubiak and hired him as their head coach. The Seahawks are moving to
hire San Francisco 49ers tight ends coach and run game coordinator
Brian Fleury as their offensive coordinator, a person with knowledge
of the hiring process said Sunday, speaking to The Associated Press
on condition of anonymity because a deal was still being worked on.
The Seahawks’ roster could look quite different in 2026, too.
Defensive starters safety Coby Bryant, cornerbacks Josh Jobe and Riq
Woolen and edge rusher Boye Mafe will become unrestricted free
agents this offseason. Offensive standouts wide receiver/return
specialist Rashid Shaheed and running back Kenneth Walker III will
be unrestricted free agents in March, too.
Both Shaheed and Walker, who was the Super Bowl MVP, have said
publicly they would like to return to Seattle next season.
Should the Seahawks’ sale wrap up by this offseason, though, the
team will not be owned by the Allen family for the first time in
nearly three decades.
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