The fate of an NFL team — and maybe Jeff Bezos’ potential future in the league — hangs on a family dispute.

Dea Spanos Berberian, sister of L.A. Chargers controlling owner Dean Spanos, filed a petition in Los Angeles County Superior Court on Thursday to force a sale of the team, saying there is no way it can pay off its debts. Berberian, Spanos, and two of their siblings each own 15% of the team, with another 36% in a family trust. The family has owned the team since 1984.

The petition mentions a potential new owner: Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos. Bezos is known to be interested in purchasing an NFL team and was linked to sale talks surrounding the Washington Football Team, a fact that the petition noted — citing Front Office Sports reporting. The petition says that “the Chargers could be a perfect opportunity” for Bezos.

Berberian claims that the trust’s debts and expenses top $353 million, and that there is no plan for how it will pay the more than $22 million that it pledged to charities.

Spanos and the other two siblings with a stake in the team fired back with a letter on Thursday sent to FOS and other outlets calling Berberian’s plan a “misguided personal agenda” and saying they were prepared to purchase her stake in the team if she no longer wanted it.

The team’s 2017 move from San Diego to L.A. came with substantial challenges. The team had to pay the NFL a $650 million relocation fee, share a stadium with the Rams, leave a fanbase it had developed over 56 years, and start fresh with a city that already had an NFL team.

Endeavor said in a filing with the SEC that it plans to use proceeds from an IPO to raise “at least $1.75 billion” to purchase the chunk of UFC it doesn’t already own.

The media and entertainment conglomerate tapped UFC’s $150 million revolving credit line last year, as the pandemic had a “significant impact” on operations. Endeavor also highlighted how UFC and Professional Bull Riders, another entity it owns, “were two of the first sports organizations to responsibly return” to action last spring. The company owns sports/entertainment powerhouse IMG as well.

No date or price for the IPO was listed in the filing, although the stock is set to be traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker “EDR.” 

Endeavor currently owns 50.1% of UFC. Private equity firms Silver Lake and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts —  companies that were part of the $4 billion purchase from brothers Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta in 2016 — hold the rest. 

Endeavor’s current debt load is $5.7 billion, according to the filing. In 2020, the company saw revenues of $3.47 billion with a net loss of $625.3 million.

In another major reveal, Tesla CEO Elon Musk is set to join Endeavor’s board of directors. Musk was selected “because of his professional background and experience running a public company,” the filing read.

Headed by Hollywood super-agent Ari Emanuel, Endeavor planned an IPO in 2019, but the effort was halted after other companies like Uber and Peloton faltered when they went public.

Major League Baseball’s challenge is attracting a younger fanbase. ESPN analyst Alex Rodriguez has pinpointed a ”game-changer” for the Grand Old Game: putting microphones on players during live play.

“One of the things people would always ask me is, ‘Hey, what were you and Mariano [Rivera] talking about?’ Or ‘What were you and [Andy] Pettitte, what were you and [Derek] Jeter, talking about?’” said Rodriguez, a 14-time MLB All-Star.

Rodriguez called a Philadelphia Phillies-Atlanta Braves game last August where Bryce Harper wore a mic. Harper didn’t just talk to ESPN announcers between innings or from the dugout — he joined their discussion during live play. 

Rodriguez, who starred for the Mariners, Rangers, and Yankees, was blown away. If A-Rod had his way, he’d mic up players in batting cages, in the clubhouse, and even in their cars.

“I want to see them driving home and coming to the stadium,” A-Rod said. “The more, the better. The young people don’t just want generic content. They want the things behind the scenes they can’t get anywhere else.”

With an estimated net worth of $350 million, Rodriguez knows baseball and business. Warren Buffett is his financial mentor and he calls George Steinbrenner, the late Yankees owner, his “North Star.” 

Rodriguez led an investment group that almost bought the New York Mets, and he’s a player in CGI Merchant Group, a $650 million hospitality fund looking to acquire hotels. The Rodriguez-backed SPAC Slam Corp. went public via a $500 million IPO last month.