The estate of Paul G. Allen announced Wednesday that it has begun a formal process to sell the Seattle Seahawks franchise, in accordance with Allen’s long-standing directive that his sports holdings eventually be sold and the proceeds directed to philanthropic causes.

As such, the estate could not have chosen a better moment, given the Seahawks’ stunning success in Super Bowl LX just over a week ago. The Athletic had first reported, last month, that the team would be put up for sale, regardless of the result of the big game, but the exact timing had remained unclear. The team will not be short of interest — and would have remained popular even if the 2025 season had not been the success it became, but those charged with seeing the sale process expect little to be settled before the Seahawks begin the defense of their second Lombardi.

Paul Allen, the Microsoft co-founder, purchased the Seahawks from Ken Behring for approximately $200m back in 1997, as much to prevent the franchise from relocating out of the Pacific Northwest, and was rewarded, albeit after 17 years, when Seattle claimed its first Super Bowl title with a dominant victory over Denver in Super Bowl XLVIII. When Allen died at the age of 65 from complications related to non-Hodgkin lymphoma, the Seahawks were placed in a trust, requiring Jody Allen, as executor of her brother’s estate, to maximise the franchise’s value in any sale.

The estate continues to hold a minority stake in MLS side Seattle Sounders, but is currently in the process of finalising a deal to sell the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers to a group led by billionaire Tom Dundon, who also owns the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes.

Any sale will be shaped by the NFL’s ownership structure, which requires a controlling owner to hold at least 30 percent of a franchise, with no more than 24 minority investors permitted. With franchise valuations soaring — and new media rights deals on the horizon — the field of prospective buyers is largely limited to the ultra-wealthy.

The most recent benchmark for an NFL franchise sale came in 2023, when the Washington Commanders were sold to a group led by Josh Harris for a record $6.05bn. That process took more than eight months from initial announcement to completion, but significantly upped the ante after the Broncos were sold to the Walton-Penner family for $4.65bn in a comparatively swift four-month process just a year previously.

Sportico estimated the Seahawks’ value at $6.59bn last year, ranking the franchise 14th in the NFL following 18 percent increase year-on-year. If that follows, a sale price approaching $8bn would set a new NFL record and require a controlling investor to commit at least $2.4bn upfront.