The sale of the Seattle Seahawks in the NFL appears to be taking longer than expected. Reports of interest from tech billionaires have now been put to rest.

The sale of the Seattle Seahawks appeared to be gaining momentum. As reported by “Front Office Sports,” two tech billionaires had entered the bidding war for the reigning NFL Super Bowl champions.

The rumor has now been officially denied by the billionaires in question.

The franchise is currently part of the estate of the late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, who died of cancer in October 2018. Since then, the settlement of the deceased’s assets has been dragging on.

NFL: Cook and Zuckerberg reportedly not interested in buying the Seahawks

Just this past March, the sale of the Portland Trail Blazers in the NBA was finalized for a valuation of around four billion dollars. The Seahawks were officially put up for sale in mid-February, just a few days after winning the Super Bowl.

As “Front Office Sport” reported, citing multiple sources, Facebook/Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg and outgoing Apple CEO Tim Cook, among others, are said to have serious interest in acquiring a majority stake in the Seattle team.

However, a Meta spokesperson denied this to “Bloomberg” magazine. Cook’s interest was also described as “completely false” by a “source close to Apple.”

The transaction would by no means have been cheap. The most recent franchise sale in the NFL was that of the Washington Commanders, which changed hands in 2023 for $6.05 billion. Since then, only deals for minority stakes in a few clubs have been finalized.

For example, a 10% stake in the New York Giants was sold last September for $1 billion to the family of billionaire Julia Flesher Koch, widow of oil magnate David H. Koch. This would set the price for the entire franchise at $10 billion.

Seattle Seahawks: Zuckerberg as sole buyer?

The Miami Dolphins were valued even higher; they reportedly sold a one-percent stake to Xiaomi CEO Lin Bin for $125 million, which would put the team’s value at $12.5 billion.

If the Seahawks were to go on the market in a similar price range, Zuckerberg would certainly have been in pole position. The 41-year-old’s net worth is estimated at around $232 billion.

Apple CEO Cook, who recently announced his intention to step down from his role starting in September, would likely have needed one or more partners to finance the purchase, as the American’s net worth is reportedly “only” $2.8 billion.