Thread: ESPN: How John Elway missed out on a fortune

Did anyone see this yesterday? I don't remember this story at the time, if it came out. Pretty interesting, given where he ended up anyway:

The document was dated Sept. 23, 1998, and it contained, at least in retrospect, John Elway's golden ticket to a lifetime fortune.

The deal: Denver Broncos owner Pat Bowlen would give Elway the right to buy 10 percent of the Broncos for $15 million. Bowlen would also give him the option to buy another 10 percent of the franchise by forgoing the deferred salary Bowlen owed him on the condition Elway would become a special assistant to Bowlen, which would eventually lead to a COO job. That total deferred salary? About $21 million.

But there was even more that made the deal a no-lose proposition. If Elway wasn't happy with his investment, he could sell back his interest, two to five years later, for $5 million more than his original purchase price plus 8 percent interest a year. Since the Broncos weren't making cash calls, it was essentially free money.

And then came the real kicker. If Elway agreed to the deal, he would have right of first refusal to buy any other stake in the team if the Bowlen family sold to an outsider. NFL teams don't come up for sale often.

The value of NFL franchises has skyrocketed, but even then the Broncos were worth plenty. Still, Elway had the wherewithal to easily make this deal. In 1997, he made the largest business deal an NFL player had ever made off the field by selling his car dealerships for what turned out to be $82.5 million, comprised mostly of AutoNation stock. Elway had nine months to think about the offer. The option to buy a piece of the Broncos expired in June 1999. In January, he led the team to its second straight title. In May, he retired. June eventually passed and Elway never executed the deal, which was not extended and never offered again.

http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/14...er-broncos-nfl

At the time I think he was done with football and thinking about other things. Looking at where he is now though, it would have been a pretty easy decision.

I remember this well. At the time, the previous owner, Kaiser, sued Bowlen over the deal. He held that their original contract required Bowlen to essentially offer him first right of refusal before selling the team to anyone, and that his offer to Elway violated their sales agreement.

I think that lawsuit went on for several years if I remember right.

I'm not too worried about John's fortune.

Its not like John is begging on the streets.

Originally Posted by NightTrainLayne

I remember this well. At the time, the previous owner, Kaiser, sued Bowlen over the deal. He held that their original contract required Bowlen to essentially offer him first right of refusal before selling the team to anyone, and that his offer to Elway violated their sales agreement.

I think that lawsuit went on for several years if I remember right.

You are correct.

In 1998, Bowlen allegedly offered to sell Elway 20 percent of the team. That sparked a lawsuit from former owner Edgar Kaiser, who claimed he had a right to match any such deals.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com...-has-the-cash/

And since he got divorced in the mean time, a large wad of his assets would have become his ex's property. Just sayin'

Originally Posted by OrangeHoof

And since he got divorced in the mean time, a large wad of his assets would have become his ex's property. Just sayin'

always lookin' to the positive side.