The Phinsider
Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross has long said that he has no plans to sell the team. On Wednesday, in an interview with Bloomberg Newsmakers, Ross publicly stated for the first time that he not only plans to keep the team in his family, but that he turned down an offer of $15 billion for the team.
Ross bought the Dolphins in 2009, taking over from previous owner Wayne Huizenga. He purchased a 50% stake in the team for $1 billion, and assumed complete ownership soon after. Since then, the team’s value has skyrocketed to nearly $7.5 billion, the 11th most valuable team in the NFL.
In the past, Ross has stated his wishes to keep the team in his family, with many alluding to his son-in-law, Daniel Sillman, taking over at some point. However, this was never confirmed by Ross—until now.
In the video above, Ross says that “My son-in-law, who’s involved in sports, and worked for me before he married my daughter, he is terrific. He will run it, it will stay in the family. I don’t think there’s a better asset.” Sillman, Ross’ son-in-law, is the CEO of Relevent, a live soccer events and media company that primarily handles the marketing of the media rights for the UEFA Champions League in Europe, among other soccer leagues. Sillman was also a student at the University of Michigan, where the business school is named after Stephen Ross, as he is one the school’s top alumni.
Ross concluded the interview when asked what’s missing from his ownership of the Dolphins, replying with just a single word: “Winning.”
