Dan Rooney and Son Set to Buy Steelers

There is good news for Steelers fans, as it appears that chairman Dan Rooney and his son are close to getting what he and Steelers fans want – for him to be able to buy the team out from his brothers. “It’s not really (that) a deal has been reached, but we’re coming along very well,” Art Rooney Jr. said Saturday. “You’re dealing with five people who are very private. There are a lot of ideas and nuances. We’re moving in the right direction after all,” he said. “There’s still things that have to be worked out, but it’s headed that way.”

All along it appears that the brothers wanted to see the family keep the team, and having Dan buy the rest of the interest and keep it in the family was the only way. Reports from papers in Pittsburgh say that the price that Dan needed to buy out the rest of the team sits at about $800 million. Overall the team is estimated to be worth about $1.2 billion.

Each brother owns 16 percent of the team, adding up to 80 percent, with another Pittsburgh family, the McGinleys, owning 20 percent. Those shares are not being sold. The Rooneys’ father, Hall of Famer Art Rooney Sr., bought the franchise in 1933 for $2,500.

A main reason the brothers want to sell is the fact that some of the brothers own shares of racetracks, and NFL rules restrict owners’ involvement in gambling enterprises. It also says that one person own at least 30 percent of the team.