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Steve Apostolopoulos is “confident” in his effort to acquire the Washington Commanders, a business associate of the Canadian businessman told Front Office Sports on Friday.
Apostolopoulos, a Toronto native who is part of one of Canada’s wealthiest families, has been linked to purchasing the Commanders, Charlotte Hornets, and, most recently, the Ottawa Senators over the last two weeks.
Front Office Sports could not obtain a clear picture of Apostolopoulos’ net worth, which would need to be sizable to acquire the Commanders. ESPN reported Tuesday that Apostolopoulos “submitted a fully funded $6 billion offer for the Commanders.”
Shortly after that ESPN report, a source with knowledge of the process told FOS that Josh Harris’ group is the only bidder with the necessary financial resources to purchase the Commanders.
“Steve is confident in his position, offer, and finances,” Apostolopoulos’s business associate said.
ESPN, the first outlet to report Apostolopoulos’ interest in the Commanders and Hornets, appears to be the first outlet to report Apostolopoulos attended Harvard. Bloomberg went beyond that by describing Apostolopoulos as a “Harvard University graduate.”
The rub: Sources told FOS that Apostolopoulos was never enrolled as a full-time student at the Ivy League school. That would make graduating difficult, something FOS verified indeed did not occur.
Bloomberg corrected its story on Friday.
It’s unclear how outlets began reporting Apostolopoulos’ association with Harvard. None of the bios found by FOS published before this month mentioned Harvard.
For a $6 billion bid, Apostolopoulos would have to have $1.8 billion in cash as part of the purchase per NFL rules. While it’s unclear what his personal net worth is, his family’s net worth was reported at around $3 billion in U.S. currency when his father, Andreas Apostolopoulos, died at 69 in 2021.
But net worth estimates are just that, estimates.
Apostolopoulos is the managing partner of Triple Group of Companies, the real estate conglomerate his father founded. Steve Apostolopoulos founded Six Ventures Inc., a venture capital firm, and co-founded the business credit card startup Caary.
Apostolopoulos and his siblings are also the driving force behind a 40-acre development outside Toronto that includes the Pickering Casino Resort. The massive Durham Live is anchored by the casino, which opened in January 2021.
There are no known partners for Apostolopoulos’ bid for the Commanders. Sources told FOS Bank of America had vetted Apostolopoulos’ bid, the firm Commanders owner Dan Snyder tapped to lead the potential sales process in November.
Harris — whose ownership group includes fellow billionaire Mithcell Rales and NBA legend Magic Johnson — has submitted a bid of slightly less than $6 billion.
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos hasn’t bid as of Thursday evening, a source told FOS. While it’s unclear if the world’s third-richest human will make a bid, there are indications Bezos and his reps are still monitoring the process.
