Detroit Pistons owner Tom Gores is buying a minority stake in the Los Angeles Chargers

Billionaire Pistons owner Tom Gores has closed a deal to acquire 27% of the Chargers, according to sources. The deal faces final approval from NFL owners next month.

If completed, the sale will resolve a long-standing dispute between current Chargers limited partner Dea Spanos Berberian and her three siblings, including principal owner Dean Spanos. Dea Spanos Berberian will completely relinquish her position in the team. Gores would become one of the largest non-owner family shareholders in an NFL team.

The deal does not provide a path for Gores to majority control of the team, a condition that made previous attempts to strike a deal significantly more difficult. Previous advanced talks with Clearlake Capital Group co-founders Behdad Eghbali and Jose E. Feliciano collapsed late last year, in part because of control issues.

The exact terms of the contract are not known. Forbes, Sportico and CNBC’s public estimates of the Chargers’ valuation range from $5.1 billion to $5.83 billion. However, according to Forbes and CNBC, the team is estimated to carry about $816 million in debt, and non-controlling minority stakes are typically discounted.

A representative for the Chargers declined to comment. Gores also declined to comment.

A source close to Gores said his minority position with the Chargers will not distract from his goals with the Pistons.

Gores’ acquisition includes the entire 15% that Spanos Berberian owns individually, as well as its 9% stake in a family foundation that owns 36% of the team. Additionally, Gores is acquiring 1% each from Dean Spanos, Michael Spanos and Alexis Spanos Ruhl. If this deal closes, each Spanos will individually own 24% and Gores will own 27%.

In 2021, Spanos Berberian filed a petition asking an L.A. Superior Court judge to force a sale of the team, saying mismanagement by Dean Spanos had led to insoluble debts, which in turn threatened the family’s fortunes. She later abandoned her attempt to force a sale of the entire team and instead focused on exiting her own stake.

Gores, who is worth $11.8 billion according to Bloomberg, founded Los Angeles-based Platinum Equity in 1995. Assets under management are currently approximately $48 billion.

In 2011, Gores paid $325 million for the Pistons in a deal that included The Palace of Auburn Hills and DTE Energy Music Theater. The team was most recently valued by Forbes at $3.08 billion.

As a minority shareholder in the Chargers, Gores would have no formal say in league or team governance. But his wealth, L.A. base of operations and connections appear to be in high demand among other owners and league executives, giving him considerable informal influence throughout the NFL, a rarity among limited partners.

The deal comes just weeks after the NFL approved three private equity funds and a consortium of funds to buy up to 10% of NFL clubs. Gores’ Platinum Equity is not part of the NFL’s PE program.

The NFL Finance Committee heard a detailed presentation of the Gores transaction earlier this week. It is expected to be on the agenda for the final decision when NFL owners meet in Atlanta on October 15-16.