How a Disputed $55M Loan Plays into Federal Probe of the Commanders

ESPN Daily

ESPN

Sports

4.6 • 3.9K Ratings

🗓️ 28 February 2023

⏱️ 39 minutes

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Summary

No NFL franchise has endured more public turmoil in recent years than the Washington Commanders and their owner Daniel Snyder. There have been allegations of sexual misconduct, a toxic workplace environment, the changing of the team’s controversial name… not to mention the federal investigation into the team’s finances. But now there are new allegations of potential fraud by Snyder in connection to how he treated his own business partners. So today, Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Don Van Natta delivers his latest investigation into Snyder and the Commanders – a staggering story about a hidden loan that led to Snyder’s fellow billionaires crying foul – forcing the league, and even Roger Goodell… to step in. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Don Van Natta, I want to start by apologizing.
0:04.3	I imagine that you and probably everybody listening, we're expecting to hear Pablo Torrey's
0:09.8	voice right now, but I'm sorry, man, Pablo's got the day off today.
0:14.1	So instead of his distinctive dulcet tones, you've got me.
0:18.5	Thanks, Sam.
0:19.5	And it's great to be with you on your debut as guest host.
0:24.6	We are talking because you once again have another massive story about the Washington
0:30.7	commanders and their owner, Daniel Snyder.
0:33.9	And this huge story actually begins as it often does in journalism in the tiniest of
0:40.6	places.
0:41.7	So where does it start?
0:43.0	It starts in the fine print of a footnote of a financial report of the Washington commanders
0:51.2	that was delivered in April of 2020.
0:59.1	The footnote discusses a $55 million credit line that the team had taken out 16 months
1:05.6	earlier.
1:07.2	And it was done without the knowledge or the required approval of Dan Snyder's minority
1:13.0	partners.
1:14.2	These are three men, all billionaires who own about 40% of the franchise.
1:19.4	They read the footnote and were like, what is this?
1:22.8	This is news to us.
1:25.2	And it turns out now that that loan has become a primary focus of federal prosecutors in
1:29.9	Virginia who are investigating the allegations of financial misconduct by Snyder and the Washington
	...

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