Posted on: October 16, 2024, 11:13h.
Last updated on: October 16, 2024, 11:24h.
The NFL has a new team owner, and he needs no introduction.
On Tuesday, NFL owners approved Tom Brady’s acquisition of a 5% stake in the Las Vegas Raiders. The seller is Mark Davis, the man responsible for relocating the Silver and Black from Oakland to Sin City ahead of the 2020 NFL season. Davis inherited the team after his father, Al Davis, who died in 2011.
“It’s great that Tom Brady wants to invest in the NFL,” said NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell on Tuesday at the Fall League Meeting in Atlanta. “He cares deeply about this game. He believes in its future, and I think that’s just a signal of that.”
Terms of the acquisition weren’t made public, though Forbes estimates the Raiders to be worth around $6.7 billion. That means a 5% piece would be worth around $335 million.
During his Hall of Fame career, Brady earned more than half of a billion dollars on the field and more off of it through sponsorships and investments. Since retiring for a second time in 2023, Brady is paid $37.5 million annually through his 10-year deal with Fox Sports.
Ownership Prevents Comeback
The Las Vegas Raiders haven’t exactly been embraced by Southern Nevada since relocating to the casino capital of the world. The team experienced losing seasons in 2022 and 2023, and Allegiant Stadium, the $1.9 billion complex Clark County wooed Davis with by providing $750 million in funding to the project, has become a home away from home for many teams visiting Las Vegas.
In 2024, the Raiders are 2-4, with one of those wins coming against the hopeless Cleveland Browns. Las Vegas’ home attendance ranks 29th among the NFL’s 32 teams.
Before the acquisition, many Raiders fans were calling for Davis to explore whether Brady might be interested in coming out of retirement for a third time to lead Las Vegas. Brady’s acquiring an ownership position in the NFL franchise now bars that from happening.
The seven-time Super Bowl champion seems content with the current and next chapters of his storybook life. Brady, born and raised in California’s San Mateo in the Bay Area, says purchasing a piece of the Raiders brings his “football life and journey full circle.”
I’m incredibly humbled and excited to have been unanimously approved as an owner of the Las Vegas Raiders,” Brady said. “Throughout my NFL career, I’ve learned that at its core, football is a game of teamwork, resilience, and a relentless pursuit of excellence. The Raiders franchise, and the City of Las Vegas, embody these same values, and I’m honored to become part of that story.
Brady’s affection for the Raiders certainly wasn’t felt on the gridiron during his playing days. During his 23-year career, Brady amassed a 6-1 record against the Raiders, throwing for 12 touchdowns to only one interception.
Raiders Odds Long
At 2-4 through week six of the NFL regular season, the odds of the Raiders reaching the playoffs are long.
At DraftKings, Las Vegas’ odds of playing more than 17 games during the 2024-25 NFL campaign are at +1100 for implied odds of just 8.3%. As for winning the team’s first Super Bowl since 1983, the Raiders’ odds are at +35000 for implied odds of less than 0.3%.