Mr. WEO Posted November 21, 2011 Share Posted November 21, 2011 Simple question. What personal benefit does he continue to derive from being listed as the owner of this team? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tcali Posted November 21, 2011 Share Posted November 21, 2011 Simple question. What personal benefit does he continue to derive from being listed as the owner of this team? Its called human nature.Its HIS team.He'll give it up when he dies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KD in CA Posted November 21, 2011 Share Posted November 21, 2011 Tax law. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
st. pete gogolak Posted November 21, 2011 Share Posted November 21, 2011 Yeah, it's taxes. If he sells now, he has to pay a huge capital gains tax on $700 million (or whatever sales price is) minus a $25,000 basis. Then when he dies, his estate will pay an estate tax. If he holds the team until his death, he avoids the capital gains tax. If he leaves the team to his wife, the estate tax can be pushed into the future and the team could easily stay in Buffalo another 20 years but apparently that is not his intent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheMadCap Posted November 21, 2011 Share Posted November 21, 2011 I've said it before, and unfortunately I believe it to be true: If the teams ends up getting moved after he dies because there really is NO plan, he better hope they bury him in secret... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
May Day 10 Posted November 21, 2011 Share Posted November 21, 2011 Him and his family make a lot of money every year just by holding onto the team. It is a goose that continues to lay golden eggs. I do not think they have a chance for success as long as he owns the team. However, I do not have much hope they will stay in Buffalo post-Wilson. The NFL as a whole would have to be in Buffalo's corner and help administer a local purchase. The NFL has no plans to do that IMO and if anything, they would rather orchestrate a purchase to move the team to Toronto or another place who would promise a lavish new facility. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. WEO Posted November 21, 2011 Author Share Posted November 21, 2011 Tax law. Yeah, it's taxes. If he sells now, he has to pay a huge capital gains tax on $700 million (or whatever sales price is) minus a $25,000 basis. Then when he dies, his estate will pay an estate tax. If he holds the team until his death, he avoids the capital gains tax. If he leaves the team to his wife, the estate tax can be pushed into the future and the team could easily stay in Buffalo another 20 years but apparently that is not his intent. So he's continuing his neglect of his "beloved" Bills so his elderly heirs can make even more money than they can ever spend? The capital gains tax is less than the estate tax and if he leaves it all to his bride, there is no estate tax for now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kkspike Posted November 21, 2011 Share Posted November 21, 2011 ralph has a big ego.would you want to sell the team and then hear all the rumours of how much of a ass you were. after ralph is gone you will hear all the stories on how he cut corners to save a little more money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flmike Posted November 21, 2011 Share Posted November 21, 2011 He may also be trying to make the point that an NFL team can win w/o spending the bazillions that Jones and others spend. Well, at the least the Redskins have proven that you can still lose after spending a lot. Anyway, while his succession plans don't please any of us, it is his team and we don't have to buy his product. I'm sure he'd rather have the prestige of being an NFL owner than a bigger pile of cash at this point (personally). He knows that his heirs don't want it, so he is setting it up so that they max their profit on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KD in CA Posted November 21, 2011 Share Posted November 21, 2011 So he's continuing his neglect of his "beloved" Bills so his elderly heirs can make even more money than they can ever spend? Yes. Same as every other business owner who gets competent tax advice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. WEO Posted November 21, 2011 Author Share Posted November 21, 2011 He may also be trying to make the point that an NFL team can win w/o spending the bazillions that Jones and others spend. Well, at the least the Redskins have proven that you can still lose after spending a lot. Anyway, while his succession plans don't please any of us, it is his team and we don't have to buy his product. I'm sure he'd rather have the prestige of being an NFL owner than a bigger pile of cash at this point (personally). He knows that his heirs don't want it, so he is setting it up so that they max their profit on it. What prestige is he enjoying? He rarely goes to games. The league views his product as a perennial loser. Yes. Same as every other business owner who gets competent tax advice. I agree with you and the others. His only motivation is maximizing the financial value of this team for his few heirs. If he was truly interested in the success fo the team on the field and maximizing the enjoyment of his team's fans, he would have sold this team long ago, as he has already acknowledged he does a poor job of owning this team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KD in CA Posted November 21, 2011 Share Posted November 21, 2011 I agree with you and the others. His only motivation is maximizing the financial value of this team for his few heirs. If he was truly interested in the success fo the team on the field and maximizing the enjoyment of his team's fans, he would have sold this team long ago, as he has already acknowledged he does a poor job of owning this team. So there you have it. Poor ownership will continue until he dies and the team is sold. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
K-9 Posted November 21, 2011 Share Posted November 21, 2011 Simple question. ... I'm pretty sure he won't sell the team just to piss you off. Actually, I'm convinced of it. GO BILLS!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billsfreak Posted November 21, 2011 Share Posted November 21, 2011 Simple question. What personal benefit does he continue to derive from being listed as the owner of this team? He doesn't sell the team because he is still making money, you can't lose money being an owner in the NFL and that is all Ralph has ever given a crap about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Trooth Posted November 21, 2011 Share Posted November 21, 2011 He may also be trying to make the point that an NFL team can win w/o spending the bazillions that Jones and others spend. Judging from the Bills performance over the past dozen years, he ain't gonna come close to winning that argument! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billsfan in n.h Posted November 21, 2011 Share Posted November 21, 2011 maybe he has some deep seeded hatred for buffalo? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnC Posted November 21, 2011 Share Posted November 21, 2011 Simple question. What personal benefit does he continue to derive from being listed as the owner of this team? You are asking a question that you already know the answer to. Every year he makes a substantial profit and every year his franchise appreciates. In addition, he has family on the payroll and there are expenses associated with the team from which he directly benefits i.e. corporate jet etc. Is there any doubt that Ralph would sell the franchise if it was consistently losing money and the team was annually depreciating? Another reason why the owner would not sell the team while he is alive is for psychic reasons. Who would pay attention to him if he didn't own a NFL franchise? Without a franchise he would be simply another rich elderly person who complains about his taxes and has gibberish thoughts that people are not interested in. I remember someone once directly asked him why at his age he continues to want to own a franchise and take the abuse associated with being an owner. He said that for him it gave him a purpose to get up for and that he found it fun being involved and engaged in the football decisions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flmike Posted November 21, 2011 Share Posted November 21, 2011 Judging from the Bills performance over the past dozen years, he ain't gonna come close to winning that argument! That doesn't mean that the stubborn old coot won't continue to make it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apuszczalowski Posted November 21, 2011 Share Posted November 21, 2011 Because its his and he doesn't want to. He has no reason to either. And maybe, he knows that there are no local investors (like everyone assumes) that have the ability to buy the team and keep them in Buffalo long term, so he figures he wants to help out the Buffalo fans by keeping them here as long as he can control it? As much as everyone thinks differently, its not like he isn't trying. But like the famous jauron sound bite everyone likes to make fun of, it really is hard to win in the NFL. Your team consists of almost 2-3 times the amount of players as any other sports league. The game is set up where you have essentially 2 seperate teams making up one team (offence and defence). Its also not an easy draw to attract the best, weither it be coaches, management, or players to Buffalo if there are other opportunities for them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. WEO Posted November 21, 2011 Author Share Posted November 21, 2011 I'm pretty sure he won't sell the team just to piss you off. Actually, I'm convinced of it. GO BILLS!!! Approximately the answer I expected from you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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