The Atlanta Dream is about to be sold, a WNBA spokesman confirmed to ESPN.
“As for the Atlanta Dream, we understand that the sale of the franchise is nearing completion,” the league said in a statement. “Once the sale negotiation is completed, additional information will be provided.”
Sources told ESPN on Tuesday that up to five bidders have expressed interest in buying the team, with Senator Kelly Loeffler (R-Ga.), Currently co-owner, expecting it to have no association with the franchise after the sale.
The franchise has been at the center of unrest since Loeffler wrote a letter to WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert objecting to the league’s embrace of the Black Lives Matter in the 2020 season. Players across the league initially called on Loeffler to sell his team (49%), but when he refused, they publicly supported their opponent in the senatorial race, Rev.
Warnock defeated Loeffler in the second round on January 5 and will take the oath in Congress this week.
Over the summer, ESPN reported that Dream President Chris Sienko and majority owners Mary and John Brock, the former CEO of Coca-Cola Enterprises, provided financial information to the team’s potential buyers.
It remains unclear what role the Brock family will play with the team in the future, sources said, but the new buyer is expected to own the majority property. Brock and Loeffler have owned the team since 2012.
A voice message left by ESPN for John Brock on Tuesday was not returned, no email to the Loeffler campaign.
Loeffler told ESPN in July that “we have long welcomed additional partners as part of ensuring the team’s continued development. But I will continue to be part of the team.”
She estimated that she had lost $ 10 million since the team was bought. According to campaign funding documents, Loeffler borrowed the $ 23 million senatorial campaign in 2020.