United Wholesale Mortgage's Mat Ishbia considering bid to buy NFL's Washington Commanders
Mat Ishbia is back on the NFL prowl.
The former Michigan State basketball player turned billionaire businessman is considering a bid to purchase the Washington Commanders.
"The NFL is a great league and Washington is one of the elite franchises," Ishbia said Friday in a statement. "I am interested in exploring this opportunity further in the very near future."
The United Wholesale Mortgage chairman and CEO and MSU donor attempted to buy the Denver Broncos earlier this year. The franchise was sold this summer for $4.65 billion to a group led by Walmart heir Rob Walton.
Forbes lists the 42-year-old Ishbia's net worth at roughly $4.6 billion. United Wholesale Mortgage was the nation's No. 1 mortgage lender by volume in the third quarter of this year.
Ishbia's company, headquartered in Pontiac, has sponsorship deals with MSU, and he has donated millions to the university, including helping to pay for football coach Mel Tucker's 10-year, $95 million contract signed a year ago. United Wholesale Mortgage, founded by Ishbia's father in 1986, last year pledged $500 monthly payments to the 133 scholarship and walk-on men's basketball and football players for the duration of their time as MSU athletes.
Ishbia may have to compete for the Commanders with Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, according to the Washington Post, whose bid might include music icon Jay Z.
More:Judge hears arguments in Free Press case against MSU for denying info on Tucker deal
Detroit native and media mogul Byron Allen, 61, is also "preparing a bid" for the Commanders, and would be the NFL's first Black owner. He also missed out on the Broncos sale.
The Commanders are owned by Dan Snyder and wife, Tanya, and Forbes estimates the franchise value at $5.6 billion. The Commanders said Wednesday that Daniel Snyder hired an investment bank to “consider potential transactions” for his franchise, though the team did not specify whether the Snyder's are considering the sale of the whole franchise or a minority share.
Snyder, who two weeks ago said he would never sell, has been engulfed in controversy, and is currently under investigation from Congress for the workplace culture created during his ownership, and by the NFL for a second time for a sexual misconduct allegation. Washington was previously fined $10 million from a prior investigation.
The Commanders are also being inspected by the attorneys general in Virginia and Washington, D.C. for financial improprieties.
Snyder purchased the team in 1999 for $800 million.
The franchise won three Super Bowls under head coach Joe Gibbs (1982, 1987, 1991), but has not won a playoff game since 2005, when Mark Brunell was quarterback.
The Washington Post was first to report Ishbia's interest in the Commanders.
Free Press business reporter J.C. Reindl contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Mat Ishbia considering bid to buy NFL's Washington Commanders
