Jul 8th 2008 8:15PM by Michael David Smith
The shocking news yesterday that the Pittsburgh Steelers could be for sale got even more shocking today when multiple media outlets reported that the billionaire financier Stanley Druckenmiller has already been identified as the likely buyer, with a sale possibly being agreed upon as soon as this week.

First, the bad news for Steelers fans: The beloved Steelers chairman Dan Rooney is frequently referred to as the team’s owner, but in reality Rooney owns only 16% of the team. His four brothers each also own 16%, and relatives of the late Jack McGinley own 20%. That means that if some billionaire — Druckenmiller or anyone else — comes along and can persuade the McGinleys and two of the Rooneys to sell, that billionaire can become a majority owner.

But the good news for Steelers fans is that in reality, it just doesn’t work that way. NFL teams can’t be sold without the consent of a three-fourths majority of the other NFL owners, and Rooney is held in such high esteem by his fellow owners that there’s no way that anyone can get approval for a sale unless Rooney is OK with it.
Continue Reading