Dolphins sell a 2.1% stake at a record $12.5 billion minority valuation

Miami Dolphins principal owner Stephen Ross sold a 2.1 percent stake in the team and related sports businesses to Chilean-born financier Jean Eric Salata at a valuation slightly above $12.5 billion, Sports Business Journal first reported. At that price the stake is worth about $262 million, a new high for an NFL minority deal.

The package includes pieces of Hard Rock Stadium, the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix and the organization's interest in the Miami Open. Salata chairs Swedish investment firm EQT AB. He is buying as an individual limited partner, not through a league-approved private-equity fund slot.

The NFL finance committee cleared the sale in September. Owners then approved it at their fall meetings in New York, Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer and SBJ's follow-up reporting said. Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald later wrote that Salata appears on the Dolphins' ownership directory and that owners also signed off on Ross buying back singer Marc Anthony's small stake as part of the reshuffle.

The price sits well above the $8.1 billion valuation on Ross's December 2024 sales to Ares and others, and it edges the $12.5 billion mark Xiaomi co-founder Lin Bin paid for a 1 percent slice in March. Minority stakes often carry a premium and are not a straight read on a full-team sale. The Seahawks' $9.612 billion control sale remains the league record for a whole franchise.

What it means for RSO owners

This is ownership and asset pricing, not a football-ops move. Cap room and the Dolphins' on-field roster stay on the same rules. The takeaway is how high NFL minority paper is clearing when the buyer also gets stadium and event cash flows tied to the club.