Jon Bon Jovi Bid To Buy Buffalo Bills ‘On Life Support’, May Drop Out Soon

Jon Bon Jovi may soon be giving up his dream to own the Buffalo Bills.

Sources close to the sale of the team say that Bon Jovi and his group of Toronto-based investors are falling far behind other bidders in the process, including Buffalo Sabres owner Terry Pegula. The sources say members of the group are no longer optimistic that they will be able to buy the team.

“They’re hanging on by the skin of their teeth,” one source said. “The bid’s on life support.”

Last week, Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment CEO Tim Leiweke dropped out of the group, but sources said his role in the group was small. Instead Bon Jovi has insisted on serving as the lead bidder, which has impacted the group’s ability to compete with Pegula and other cash-heavy investors.

A source said the group canceled a planned trip to Ralph Wilson Stadium on Wednesday, and that they have no plans to re-schedule. Many close to the process now say that Jon Bon Jovi could be dropping his bid to buy the Buffalo Bills.

Many believe the Bon Jovi group was only kept in the process to raise the final selling price for Pegula, who is seen as a frontrunner.

From the Canoe.ca:

Remember, their group already was dead once — for almost a week, after submitting an uncompetitively low first bid on July 29. Even after being allowed to resubmit a higher opening, non-binding bid, and being asked to more clearly express a non-relocation intention, it wasn’t until the Aug. 9-10 weekend that Morgan Stanley allowed the group to enter the sale’s final phase.

A week ago Tuesday, the group had its first face-to-face meeting in Manhattan with sale principals: members of the trust, senior executives of the Bills, Morgan Stanley and the trust’s legal adviser Proskauer Rose. It was a desultory meeting that further lowered the Toronto trio’s hopes.

As of now the Jon Bon Jovi group is still officially in the running to buy the Buffalo Bills, but sources believer they could be dropping out very soon.