NFL owners approve record sale of Denver Broncos

The Denver Broncos officially have new ownership as NFL owners have unanimously approved the $4.65 billion sale of the franchise to the Walton-Penner ownership group on Tuesday.

The move brings an end to the Pat Bowlen era, one of the NFL’s most successful runs in ownership in history. Since Bowlen took over the team, the Broncos have won 13 AFC West division titles, appeared in seven Super Bowls winning three of them.

Now, it will be Rob Walton who is majority owner with his daughter, Carri Walton-Penner, and son-in-law, Greg Penner, handling the day-to-day management of the franchise. The ownership group also brought in some big names as minority owners. Those include Melody Hobson, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and F1 race car champion Sir Lewis Hamilton. They have also had discussions with Peyton Manning, but nothing yet on that front. One change will be coming and that will be the naming of a new CEO. Joe Ellis will stick around for a transition period, but it doesn’t sound like it will be for a very long period of time.

Now that this long overdue ownership move is finished, its time to win some games. Here’s to the Walton-Penner team achieving the same kind of success Pat Bowlen brought throughout his time as owner of the Denver Broncos.

After the sale was approved by NFL owners, Rob Walton released this statement via the Denver Broncos:

“We are grateful for the support and trust of the National Football League and the 31 other teams with today’s vote. We couldn’t be more excited to join the Denver Broncos.

“It’s a responsibility and privilege to serve as stewards of such an iconic franchise. We have tremendous respect for what Pat Bowlen has meant to the Broncos and look forward to building on this organization’s championship legacy.

“While we’re deeply committed to fielding a great team to win Super Bowls, our family and extraordinary partners are also dedicated to our off-the-field responsibilities to Broncos Country and the Rocky Mountain region.

“Operating with integrity and accountability, we aim to draw on our individual strengths and those of the players, coaches and staff who have shaped the Broncos’ storied history. And to that end, we want to thank Joe Ellis for his guidance throughout this process and his willingness to serve as an advisor to ownership for this season.

“Across the entire organization, we will all continue to listen and learn.

“Most importantly, we will strive to make the Denver Broncos the best team to cheer for, play for and work for in all of sports. Go Broncos!”