Who Owns the Seattle Seahawks? Allen Family Wealth, History Explained

A look at the Seahawks ownership and why the franchise will be sold in the future.

Jody Allen is in control of the Seahawks after her brother Paul Allen’s death. | Jaime Valdez-Imagn Images

The Seahawks are set to make their fourth Super Bowl appearance in franchise history when they take on the Patriots on Sunday.

Seattle has been controlled by the Allen family for nearly 30 years, and they have helped usher in great success to the team over that span. Before they play in the Super Bowl once again, here’s a closer look at the team’s ownership.

Who owns the Seahawks?

The Seahawks are currently owned by the estate of Paul Allen. Jody Allen, the sister of Paul, is currently in control of the team.

How the Allen family acquired the team

Paul Allen bought the Seahawks from Ken Behring in 1996 for $194 million. Behring and partner Ken Hoffman had moved the team’s operations to Anaheim, Calif., and considered moving the team altogether. Allen stepped up to purchase the team and keep the Seahawks in Seattle.

Allen died in 2018 at the age of 65. The Seahawks have been owned by his estate and his sister Jody since then.

The history of the Allen family's ownership

As the NFL expanded to 28 teams in the 1970s, Seattle was among the cities awarded a franchise. The Nordstrom family and Herman Sarkowsky were the first owners of the Seahawks until 1988, when they sold the franchise to Ken Behring and Ken Hoffman. Behring and Hoffman controlled the franchise for less than a decade before selling it to Allen in 1996.

The Seahawks have seen their most success as a franchise since Allen took over. They only won their division once before Allen became the team’s owner, and have since become a regular postseason contender. They’ve made the Super Bowl four times, winning their first title in 2013-14.

Why Jody Allen is selling the Seahawks (eventually)

Ahead of the Seahawks’ return to the Super Bowl this year, ESPN reported that the Seahawks will be up for sale after the Super Bowl. Paul Allen’s estate denied that report in a statement which said, “We don’t comment on rumors or speculation, and the team is not for sale. We’ve already said that will change at some point per Paul’s wishes, but there is no news to share. Our focus right now is winning the Super Bowl and completing the sale of the Portland Trail Blazers in the coming months.”

The Wall Street Journal later reported that the NFL fined the Seahawks $5 million due to the team’s ownership structure not complying with the league’s bylaws, but commissioner Roger Goodell disputed that report and noted it will be Jody’s decision on when the franchise is sold.

Though Allen’s estate has said they are not selling the Seahawks yet, they will sell the team at some point. Allen has mandated that his sister must sell the team and donate the money from the sale to charity.

The wealth of the Allen Family: A breakdown

According to Forbes, Paul Allen had a net worth of around $20.3 billion at the time of his death. Allen gained his wealth through co-founding Microsoft alongside Bill Gates.

Along with the Seahawks, Allen was also the owner of the Portland Trail Blazers and a part-owner of the Seattle Sounders. The Allen estate sold the Trail Blazers to Tom Dundon for $4 billion in August, but remains a part-owner of the Sounders.

Outside of sports, Allen and Jody were the owners of Vulcan Inc., a company that oversaw their many business ventures from real estate to their production work as Vulcan Productions and investments into space travel. He also funded numerous philanthropic endeavors from his interest in scientific research with the Allen Institute for Brain Research and the Allen Institute for Cell Science to his donations and support of the arts.

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