In the latest news to come across the NFL this week, team owner Robert Kraft has agreed to sell a minority stake in the New England Patriots in a deal that values the franchise at a $9 billion price point. The reported 8% stake will be split between Sixth Street Capital (3%) and billionaire Dean Metropolous (5%).
Metropolous, 79, is a Greek-American investor who grew up in Watertown, Mass. and attended nearby Babson College in Wellesley. He is the CEO of C. Dean Metropolous and Company, an investment firm known not just for its business in the food and beverage industry, but specifically a 2013 deal that revived Hostess Brands and saved, among many of its beloved bakery items, the Twinkie.
After the original Hostess Brands filed for bankruptcy in late 2012, Metropoulos partnered with Apollo Global Management to form a new version of the company and acquired a majority of the product line. This of course, included the aforementioned Twinkies, Ding Dongs, and HoHos, among others.
Hostess ultimately went public in 2016 through a deal that saw The Gores Group come in as a majority owner, and in 2023, was purchased by the J.M. Smucker Company for a whopping $5.6 billion.
Not a bad investment from Metropoulos, who will now look to—at least in part—help the Patriots get back to their Super Bowl-winning ways.
The deal with New England comes amid a relatively new 2024 ruling that has allowed private equity firms to invest in NFL teams. The league has since seen similar investments in the Buffalo Bills, Los Angeles Chargers, Miami Dolphins, and Chicago Bears.
As with any purchase, it will require league approval, and Kraft will remain the team's majority owner with a 92% stake in the Patriots.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as New Patriots Minority Owner is Best Known for His Twinkie-Saving Investment.
