Legendary quarterback Tom Brady is seeking to become a minority owner of the Las Vegas Raiders. He is expected to be approved for the NFL. According to a league source, the fall owners' meeting will be held on Tuesday in Atlanta. The league's finance committee will review Brady's offer and is expected to vote to obtain the necessary 24 votes from 32 owners to approve the roughly 10 percent stake that Brady and his business partner, Tom Wagner, plan to buy.
Here's a timeline of Brady's path to potentially becoming a minority owner of the Raiders.
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January 18, 2020: Brady attended UFC 246 in Las Vegas and was photographed smiling with Raiders owner Mark Davis and then-Raiders executive Marcel Reece. The Raiders were entering their first season in Las Vegas while Brady was finishing his final season with the New England Patriots. With Brady set to become an unrestricted free agent in March, there were rumors that he might sign with the Raiders to replace Derek Carr.
The Raiders considered pursuing Brady, but coach Jon Gruden, who had the personnel power, decided against it and stuck with Carrie. Brady signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but the Raiders' flirtation remained significant as Brady's relationship with Davis deepened.
Last year, during an appearance on CBS Sports Radio, former Raiders general manager Amy Trask said Davis relied on sportscaster Jim Gray as “chief advisor” over the years and that at some point Gray ”made the relationship easierbetween Davis and Brady.
January 14, 2021: Davis agreed to buy Las Vegas' WNBAAs. He has been an Aces season ticket holder since 2018 and a WNBA fan since the game began in 1997.
February 12: 2021: Davis' purchase of the Aces has been formally approved by the WNBA and its owners.
February 1, 2022: Brady announced he was retiring from the NFL after 22 seasons at the age of 44. He won the Super Bowl with the Buccaneers after the 2020 season, but they lost in the divisional round of the playoffs the following season.
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13 mark 2022 r.: Forty days after announcing his retirement, Brady changed his mind and announced he would return to play for the Bucs in 2022. He signed a restructured one-year extension in April.
May 10, 2022 r.: Fox Sports announced that it has signed Brady to a 10-year, $375 million contract to become its primary color commentator for NFL games. The plan was that he would start playing as soon as his football career ended.
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31 May 2022 r.: Brady attended an Aces game in Las Vegas. He met with Davis and expressed his admiration for what he and the franchise were building. On the court, the team thrived and were on their way to their first WNBA title later that season. The Aces regularly sold out games and had the best attendance in the league.
“I think he was very impressed with how far women's basketball had come” Davis's goals Athlete last year. “He was also impressed by the excitement and enthusiasm of the Las Vegas crowd.”
Shortly after the game, Brady's representatives contacted Davis and asked if he would be willing to sell a minority stake in the Aces.
“He knew I was in it and I think he just felt like he wanted to be a part of it,” Davis said. “And so his people contacted me, we talked about it, and he became a partner.”
Welcome to the Aesir family, @TomBrady! 🏆 pic.twitter.com/4bj3IPQz2K
— Las Vegas Aces (@LVAces) 24 mark 2023 r
December 28, 2022: Coach Josh McDaniels announced that the Raiders are benching Carr. Although Carr signed a three-year extension with the franchise in April, it included a clause that allowed the Raiders to easily get out of the contract after one season. While benching Carr, McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler made it clear they planned to move on from the veteran quarterback.
This meant the Raiders had to find a new quarterback. The Raiders viewed Brady as their top option, according to league sources. As a Patriots assistant coach, McDaniels won six Super Bowls and built one of the best offenses in the league while working alongside Brady in New England. Brady was set to become an unrestricted free agent in March 2023, and there was reason to believe he might look to play elsewhere if he didn't win another Super Bowl with Tampa Bay.
January 16, 2023: The Bucks were eliminated in the wild-card round of the playoffs after an embarrassing 31-14 loss to the Dallas Cowboys.
February 1, 2023: Brady announced his retirement “for good.” This time he didn't go back on his decision.
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23 mark 2023 r.: The Aces officially announced that Brady had reached an agreement with Davis to become a minority owner. Although Brady passed up the opportunity to play for the Raiders, his relationship with Davis made it a good fit.
“I am very excited to be a part of the Las Vegas Aces organization,” Brady said in a statement released by the team. “My love for women's sports started at a young age when I went to all my older sisters' games. They were definitely the best athletes in our house! … I have always been a huge fan of women's sports and admire the work that the players, staff and the WNBA continue to do to grow the sport and empower future generations of athletes. To be able to make any contribution to this mission as a member of the Aces organization is an incredible honor.”
Tom Brady, WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert and Raiders and Aces owner Mark Davis participate in the 2023 WNBA Championship Banner Raising Ceremony prior to the Aces' first game of 2024 on May 14. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
May 22, 2023 r.: Davis told ESPN that he had reached an agreement with Brady for him to purchase a minority stake in the Raiders.
“We are excited about Tom joining the Raiders,” Davis told ESPN. “It's exciting because he will be the third player in National Football League history (after George Halas Sr. and Jerry Richardson) to become an owner.”
October 5, 2023: The case was reported by the Washington Post. that Brady's bid to become part owner of the Raiders has hit a snag. According to the report, other NFL owners expressed concerns that Davis would offer Brady a discounted price for a 10 percent stake. When will he contact AthleteRepresentatives for Davis and Brady declined to comment.
August 28, 2024: As Brady prepared to make his first-week debut on Fox Sports, he learned they were facing sweeping restrictions on his offer to acquire a stake in the Raiders.
A league source said Brady still hasn't been formally approved as a minority owner Athlete serving as a Fox analyst, he would not have access to the key typical of NFL broadcasters. He is not allowed access to other teams' facilities or practices, nor can he participate in broadcast production meetings, which typically include meetings with coaches and players before games. He is also prohibited from publicly criticizing officials or other teams and could be fined or suspended if the league finds him violating this policy. He must also abide by the league's gambling and anti-tampering policies and is limited to “strictly social communication” with members of other teams.
A network source reported Athlete It was Fox Sports who had no objections to the restrictions, and Brady agreed with them.
October 5, 2024: According to the Washington Post, Brady and businessman Tom Wagner, co-founder of Knighthead Capital Management, increased their financial offer by purchasing Davis' 10 percent stake in Raiders.
October 15, 2024: The NFL's fall owners' meetings are held in Atlanta. If owners vote on Brady's offer as expected, 24 of 32 votes would be needed to approve his offer. The offer is expected to be approved according to league sources.
If they don't vote in Atlanta, their next chance will be at the next NFL combine, which will be held on December 10-11 in Irving, Texas.
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AthleteAndrew Marchand, Richard Deitsch, Dianna Russini and Vic Tafur contributed to this report.
(Top photo of Mark Davis and Tom Brady: Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
