Michael Strahan Competing Against Eli Manning For Ownership Stake Of NY Giants

Strahan and Manning are going head-to-head for minority ownership of their former team, the New York Giants.

Michael Strahan is reportedly competing with his former New York Giants teammate Eli Manning for a minority ownership stake in the team.

On May 5, insiders confirmed Strahan has teamed up with billionaire Marc Lasry to pursue an investment in the NFL team, Sportico reported. The anonymous sources revealed the duo’s bid to go after the 10% ownership that Giants’ current owners, the Mara and Tisch families, put up for sale in February.

Eli Manning, Strahan’s former teammate who he won Super Bowl XLII with in 2008, was initially in preliminary conversations to join the ownership group, but decided to back out due to conflicts with his other business holdings. Now the two former Giants are in a bidding competition as Manning works to assemble his own bid for minority ownership with his financial partners.

Strahan has Lasry on his side, a previous co-owner of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks from 2014 to 2023. The co-founder of Avenue Capital sold his share of the Bucks in 2023 and raised nearly $450 million to launch Avenue Sports. Lasry’s latest sports ventures include ownership in a TGL franchise and an investment in the women’s basketball startup Unrivaled.

Strahan earned $76.4 million over his 15-season career with the Giants before retiring in 2007. Since then, the Class of 2014 Pro Football Hall of Famer has transitioned into a successful media career, serving as a Fox NFL Sunday analyst and a regular co-host on ABC’s Good Morning America. He also heads his own talent agency, SMAC Entertainment, which added Terrell Owens to its roster last year.

The NFL star’s ownership bid follows the Giants’ February announcement that owners enlisted Moelis to explore selling a minority, non-controlling stake in the team. Although private equity firms are now permitted to invest in NFL franchises, the Giants are focused on selling the stake to individuals and family offices.

The Mara family founded the Giants in 1925 for just $500, and the Tisch family became co-owners in 1991 after purchasing a 50% stake. While the Giants share the $1.6 billion New Jersey-based MetLife Stadium with the New York Jets, their franchise is valued higher, thanks to stronger sponsorship deals and ticket revenue.