During the two-and-a-half-hour eight-owner NFL finance committee's meeting on Wednesday in New York, concerns were raised about Josh Harris' bid to purchase the Washington Commanders, according to a report from the Washington Post.
The concerns will slow the momentum for the tentative deal between the Harris-led group and Dan Snyder becoming finalized later this month when the league's owners meet, the Post reported. But the reservations raised on Wednesday do not mean the Harris deal will be rejected, per the Post.
One source told the Post that "everyone wants it to get done," and that they were not "saying it can't get done... we'll have to see."
However, another person told the Post the league finance committee came out of the meeting on Wednesday with less clarity and certainty about the deal than they had going into the meeting.
After there was initial optimism that the deal did not include major issues, and only "small holes" in the deal that could be addressed relatively easily, this meeting in New York marked the first opportunity for the committee members to study the details of the unsigned, nonexclusive deal.
The concerns center around the large number of limited partners the Harris bid has – reportedly as many as 17 – and the committee will need additional time to examine all the financial aspects of those partners and the deal in its entirety. Earlier on Wednesday, the Athletic reported the number of partners will increase the time needed for the league's vetting process and those who are from outside the U.S.
A source told the Post that Harris has to demonstrate he has sufficient liquidity to be the principal owner of the team to complete the $6 billion purchase. NFL rules state Harris would need to have at least a 30 percent equity stake in the franchise.
The limited partners include Mitchell Rales (12 percent), Magic Johnson (4 percent), and several who have just been revealed, whose stake is unknown: Colombian billionaire Alejandro Santo Domingo, Eric Schmidt (the former CEO of Google), and Mitchell Morgan.
Read the full report in the Washington Post here.
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