Jason Kelce. Courier-Post photo by Jim Walsh / USA TODAY NETWORK / USA TODAY NETWORK

These former NFC East rivals seek future NFL ownership

By Bruce Ewing | Last updated Jun 16, 2024 5:40 PM ET

Jason Kelce wants to buy a piece of the Philadelphia Eagles. He better hurry up before a former division rival beats him to it.

As co-owner of a private equity firm known as Brand Velocity, retired Giants quarterback Eli Manning holds a minority share of Gotham FC, a National Women's Soccer League team. Now he’d like to own an NFL team.

According to Bloomberg’s Anna J. Kaiser and Manning’s partner Drew Scheinman, the 43-year-old “definitely” interested in buying a stake in an NFL franchise, but which one?

Weeks later, Bloomberg’s Gillian Tan reported that Philadelphia Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie was working with New York- and Chicago-based investment banks to seek potential buyers for a minority share of the team.

Lurie bought the Eagles from Norman Braman in 1994 for $185M. He’s owned the Eagles nearly twice as long as any owner in franchise history and according to Bloomberg, his team is now worth about $7.5B.

No wonder Manning wants in on NFL ownership. But so does Kelce. During a recent “New Heights” podcast, which he hosts with his brother Travis, the retired center and future analyst said that he’d walk away from his ESPN deal to own a piece of the Philadelphia Eagles.

Trav says he’d be willing to turn down the Owner’s Box for the Broadcast Booth pic.twitter.com/oFSZjllGuK
— New Heights (@newheightshow) June 13, 2024

“Listen, I’ll back out of the TV deal right now if you tell me I could own the Philadelphia Eagles,” Jason said.

“What? No way!” Travis said, to which Jason replied, “Come on, are you kidding me? To be an owner? That’s like another level.”

Surely, Lurie would rather sell to Kelce than a division rival like Manning but unfortunately for both, neither has the means to buy a franchise outright and NFL rules prohibit ownership by private equity firms, for now.

According to ESPN’s Michael Rothstein, a special committee of NFL owners has been investigating potential changes to the league’s rules for ownership.

A change in policy could free up cash for owners to invest in other areas or pursue projects such as stadium renovations. So what could Kelce or Manning get with their piece of the NFL pie? That depends.

Limited partners rarely have decision-making power with NFL teams which could be frustrating for those investing millions. However, limited partnerships can lead to majority ownership, even if it’s with another team.

Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam and Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper started as minority stakeholders in the Pittsburgh Steelers before taking over their current teams and according to Forbes, each franchise is now worth over $4B, significantly more than Kelce’s $81M and Manning’s $252M career earnings.

Bruce Ewing

Bruce Ewing is 183 pounds of twisted steel and Happy Meals. His work has appeared on Yardbarker, 5th Down Fantasy, Inside the Iggles and MSN. Give a Philly fan a break and follow him on Twitter/X at @fantasybruce.

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