NFL owners unanimously approve Commanders sale for record price

The Dan Snyder era in Washington has officially come to an end.

The NFL's owners unanimously approved the sale of the Washington Commanders to Josh Harris, finalizing a $6.03 billion deal – a record price for a North American sports franchise. 

It closes the book on Snyder's tumultuous 24-year run as owner of the franchise. During Snyder's ownership, the organization was overrun by scandal, poor results on the field, a terrible stadium and a decades-long controversy over the name of the team, all of which resulted in the plummeting of the franchise's popularity within the nation's capital. 

Washington made the playoffs just six times, won only two playoff games and never appeared in as much as an NFC Championship game – let alone a Super Bowl – during Snyder's ownership. The team has not won a playoff game since the 2005 season.

Despite all of that, the franchise still saw a 700 percent increase in value from Snyder's original purchase to its most recent sale price. Snyder originally bought the team for $800 million in 1999. 

The fact the value could increase so much given the poor stadium situation and lack of results on the field is a testament to what a monster the NFL is and just how valuable NFL franchises are. 

This should be a welcome day for Commanders fan and hopefully the start of a new and more successful chapter.

Throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, prior to Snyder's ownership, Washington was an elite team in the NFL, winning multiple Super Bowls. Football was the unquestioned king of D.C. sports. But all of that started to rapidly dwindle throughout Snyder's ownership and had really started to reach rock bottom in recent years, as opposing fans regularly outnumbered the home fans at FedEx Field.