The Raiders could ultimately be controlled by someone outside the Davis family for the first time since the early 1970s, as NFL team owners are set to vote later this month on a succession plan under development.
Those owners are set to vote on a structure that would give Silver Lake co-CEO Egon Durban the option to acquire a majority stake in the team from owner Mark Davis, according to sources. A sale of a controlling position in the Raiders is not imminent, but if the vote passes, Durban would have a first right of refusal to acquire that equity.
Durban is already a limited partner in the Raiders, having first entered the team’s ownership in December 2024 with a 7.5% stake. At that time, Discovery Land Company founder and chairman Michael Meldman also acquired a 7.5% stake in the team. Those transactions closely followed a separate October 2024 sale of another 10.5% of the team to a group of partners that included seven-time Super Bowl winner and Fox Sports broadcaster Tom Brady.
The latest move is also set to come with the sale of another 7% of the team to Durban and Meldman, valuing the franchise at nearly $10 billion.
The Raiders vote will be part of the league’s annual meeting in Phoenix starting March 29. Also on the agenda are votes on a pair of proposals related to roster development, as well as other measures potentially emerging from the league’s competition committee next week.
A Different Era
The Durban situation highlights a changing of the guard within NFL ownership.
Mark’s father, Al Davis, is one of the league’s legendary figures, first serving as the team’s head coach, then the commissioner of the American Football League. He returned to the Raiders as a part-owner and gained control of the franchise in 1972—ultimately winning three Super Bowls and becoming well known for his brash persona, twice moving the team, and his legal battles with the NFL.
The elder Davis died in 2011. Mark is now the team’s managing general partner and oversaw the franchise’s move to Las Vegas in 2020.
Durban, meanwhile, is estimated to be worth $2.5 billion. The pending Raiders situation would be a personal transaction and not one directly involving Silver Lake, thus triggering the NFL’s private equity rules. Silver Lake is not one of the league’s approved private equity investors. Much of Durban’s wealth, however, derives from the PE world.
The Raiders, meanwhile, have the No.1 pick in the upcoming NFL Draft and are expected to use it on Indiana quarterback, national champion, and Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza. In Las Vegas, Mendoza will be expected to help revitalize a franchise that has just two playoff appearances since advancing to Super Bowl XXXVII during the 2002 season.
