Detroit Pistons owner Tom Gores is set to buy a 27% stake of the Chargers, a person familiar with the transaction told The Times on Friday. The person spoke on the condition they not be identified because of the confidential nature of the deal.
The transaction will resolve a long-running dispute between Dea Spanos Berberian and her siblings — including Chargers controlling owner Dean Spanos — that spilled into court in April 2021.
Gores is buying Spanos Berberian’s share of the franchise, the person familiar with the transaction said, but he won’t control or have a path to control the organization and will not influence the day-to-day operations of the team.
After alleging her brother’s mismanagement of the team led to debt that jeopardized the family’s wealth, Spanos Berberian hoped to force a sale of the team through a petition filed by attorney Adam Streisand. He previously represented Jeanie Buss in her fight to gain control of the Lakers from her brothers, and also Steve Ballmer in the proceeding that forced Donald Sterling to sell the Clippers.
As the litigation continued, the person familiar with the transaction said, Spanos Berberian instead shifted her focus to leaving the ownership group.
The price for Gores’ stake in the franchise is not known. The sale must still be approved by the NFL owners next month at a regularly scheduled quarterly meeting in Atlanta on Oct. 15-16.
