Jon Bon Jovi Wants To Keep The Bills Where They Are

Jon Bon Jovi is a potential buyer in the bid for NFL team the Buffalo Bills, but a source connected to his group says the rumors of relocation are untrue. The team went up for sale in March after owne...
Jon Bon Jovi Wants To Keep The Bills Where They Are
Written by Amanda Crum
  • Jon Bon Jovi is a potential buyer in the bid for NFL team the Buffalo Bills, but a source connected to his group says the rumors of relocation are untrue.

    The team went up for sale in March after owner Ralph Wilson passed away, but Bon Jovi isn’t the only buyer interested in it; Donald Trump and Buffalo Sabres owners Terry and Kim Pegula are also in talks to take over ownership, which won’t come cheap. The team is expected to go for about $1 billion.

    The New Jersey native won’t be the sole owner if the deal goes through, however; the Toronto-based investment group he’s associated with has two other investors, so ownership of the team would be split into thirds.

    A strict clause in the team’s contract stipulates that they must play at Ralph Wilson stadium throughout 2019 anyway, so relocation is not an option unless the buyers want to face a penalty in excess of $400 million. Ouch.

    “There’s nothing that says the NFL will ever give you the right to move it, irrespective of whatever the lease says,” a sports franchise expert said.

    Bon Jovi has expressed interest in owning a team for a while now, since at least last fall. When word got out, fans became concerned that he might take the opportunity to relocate the team. But Bills President Russ Brandon said that Wilson was committed to keeping them right where they are.

    “Everyone is motivated to keep this franchise viable here for generations to come,” Brandon said.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

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