Vikings Owners Closing In On MLS Team Purchase

An NFL team in the frigid Midwest and a pair of soccer teams in sunny Florida may soon have the same owners.

The Wilf family, owner of the Minnesota Vikings, is believed to be closing in on the purchase of Orlando City SC and the National Women’s Soccer League’s Orlando Pride for $400-450 million, per Sportico.

The real-estate development billionaires will have to divest their minority share of Nashville SC to complete the purchase.

The deal would also include Exploria Stadium and the Orlando City academy system.

• Brothers Zygmunt and Mark Wilf and cousin, Leonard Wilf, bought the Vikings in 2005 for $600 million. The team is now worth $2.95 billion, according to Forbes.
• They were rumored to be top contenders to buy the Minnesota Timberwolves last summer. In April, the T-Wolves were sold to a group led by Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore.

Just 10 teams in 2004, MLS has nearly tripled in size since, with 27 teams this season and one more set to enter the league in each of the next two seasons. 

Soccer is the third-most popular sport among Americans ages 6-24, and team values grew 30% from 2018 to 2019, per Forbes.