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- A Los Angeles Chargers co-owner has floated Jeff Bezos as a possible buyer of the team.
- It's the fourth NFL team Bezos has been linked to in the last three years.
- CBS Sports reported in 2019 that Bezos was interested in purchasing an NFL franchise.
- See more stories on Insider's business page.
A member of the family that owns the Los Angeles Chargers is trying to force a sale of the team, and she wants Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos to come to the rescue.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Dea Spanos Berberian, the sister of Chargers controlling owner Dean Spanos, filed a petition in Los Angeles County Superior Court alleging that the team should be sold in order to reduce the family's mounting debt. Spanos Berberian is a co-trustee of the Spanos family trust along with Dean Spanos.
In her petition, Spanos Berberian names a potential buyer: Bezos. She called the Chargers "a perfect opportunity" for Bezos, given his previously reported interest in buying an NFL team.
It's the fourth NFL team Bezos has been linked to in the last three years.
The reports of Bezos eyeing NFL ownership date back to 2018, when CBS Sports reported that Bezos was considering buying an NFL team. Soon after, the Washington Post reported that Bezos was interested in buying the Seattle Seahawks following the death of its owner, Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen.
The Seahawks never went up for sale, and Allen's sister, Jody, took over the ownership of the team.
But that didn't end speculation that Bezos would purchase a franchise. The same year, rumors swirled that Bezos was interested in the Detroit Lions, which has been owned by the Ford family since the early 1960s and wasn't up for sale. The team's president, Rod Wood, confirmed at the time that multiple people had inquired about purchasing the team but that there were never any serious discussions about a sale. He did not confirm whether Bezos was one of the people who had inquired.
More recently, Dan Snyder, the owner of the Washington Football Team, has been under pressure to sell off the franchise amid rising tensions within the organization. According to a report from Front Office Sports, Bezos has been named as a potential owner for that team as well.
A spokesperson for Amazon did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment on Bezos' interest in NFL ownership.
Bezos does appear to be a sports fan. He attended the men's Wimbledon final in July 2019 and was spotted at the Super Bowl that same year, posing for a picture with his brother, Mark, and Shaquem and Shaquill Griffin, both of whom play for Seattle. The photo racked up over thousands likes and comments, including one that said: "Please tell me this is a sign @jeffbezos is buying @seahawks 🙏🏻🙏🏻."
Bezos attended the Super Bowl again in 2020 and posed for a photo with the singer Lizzo.
-Jeff Bezos (@JeffBezos) February 3, 2020
According to a report from CBS Sports, Bezos has "become close" with several NFL team owners and has "strong support" inside the league.
Bezos, 57, is currently the world's richest person with a net worth of $185 billion, according to Bloomberg's Billionaires Index. He announced in February that he will step down from his role as Amazon CEO last this year in order to focus on "new products and early initiatives" at the company. He also said he plans to spend more time on philanthropy, as well as his two other major endeavors: The Washington Post, which he purchased 2013, and his rocket company, Blue Origin.