Report: Snoop Dogg part of bid to purchase Senators
Published
Hip hop artist Snoop Dogg is part of a bid for the Ottawa Senators and has reportedly aligned with the group led by Los Angeles-based entrepreneur Neko Sparks, according to The Athletic's Ian Mendes.
“He’s passionately involved. He’s coming up with ideas. And he’s legitimately excited,” said a source of Snoop’s involvement to The Athletic. “He wants this team.”
While it's unclear how much financial stake Snoop has put into the group, sources told The Athletic that said the Sparks group is not deterred by the franchise's reported $1 billion price tag.
The 51-year-old rap artist has reportedly begun planning on how he could grow the Senators' brand should the Sparks bid be successful, including joining the TSN broadcast booth to provide analysis and commentary for Ottawa regional game broadcasts.
Sources also told Mendes that Snoop is intrigued by the possibility of growing and marketing hockey to families of more diverse backgrounds in the Ottawa region.
“He’s passionate about trying to make this game affordable for visible minorities and kids in low-income areas who haven’t been able to play hockey in the past,” said a source. “He wants to be community oriented.”
Snoop is a force in the entertainment industry, with more than 100 million combined followers on Instagram and Twitter. He purchased Death Row Records, the label for his first album in 1993, and is a 17-time Grammy Award nominee.
Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds is also interested in purchasing the team and, along with the Remington Group, is preparing a bid of more than $1 billion to purchase the Senators and the Canadian Tire Centre, Postmedia's Bruce Garrioch reported last week.
Garrioch also reported that final bids for the team are due on May 15.
The Senators announced last November – eight months after the passing of owner Eugene Melnyk – that the team was officially up for sale and that any new ownership would not be allowed to move the franchise out of the city. Los Angeles-based magazine Sportico valued the Senators at $655 million last October, while NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly estimated last month the sale price will be more than $800 million and could eclipse $1 billion.