John Fisher sells San Jose Earthquakes to media mogul Heath Freeman

Michael Nowels, Bay Area News Group on Nov 13, 2026

Published in Soccer

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SAN JOSE, Calif. — The San Jose Earthquakes have a new owner, a year and a half after news broke that John Fisher was seeking to sell the team. Private investor Heath Freeman, the president of Alden Global Capital, has agreed to purchase the club.

Alden owns MediaNews Group, the parent company of this news organization as well as dozens of newspapers across the U.S.

Major League Soccer’s board of governors unanimously approved the sale at a value of $625 million earlier this week, and the transaction is expected to close in a matter of weeks, the league announced Friday.

San Jose, which finished fourth in the Western Conference this season, is set to host its first home playoff game since opening PayPal Park in 2015. The Earthquakes, who last made the playoffs in 2020, will play the Houston Dynamo in the three-game series beginning Nov. 24.

Freeman has invested in sports before; he has been the managing partner of the Florida Freedom, a Professional Bull Riders team, since 2022 and became executive chairman of the Association of Volleyball Professionals, the largest beach volleyball tour in the U.S., in 2024.

The Quakes represent a significant step up in visibility from those sporting ventures, however. Forbes valued them earlier this year at $550 million, ranking them No. 24 in the 30-team league.

“Our vision is simple — winning on and off the field for San Jose and the entire region,” Freeman said in a statement. “The Bay Area is home to some of the world’s great institutions, sports franchises and leaders.”

The deal also includes PayPal Park, which is owned and operated by the Quakes and is also the home venue for Bay FC of the National Women’s Soccer League.

Fisher has faced criticism for his stewardship of the Earthquakes and the Athletics of Major League Baseball, who moved from Oakland to Sacramento in 2025 on their way to Las Vegas.

The Earthquakes’ club payroll has ranked in the league’s bottom 10 each year over the last decade, though they did make three splashy additions before the 2025 season in all-time winningest MLS coach Bruce Arena, as well as strikers Josef Martinez and Chicho Arango. Neither striker is with the club anymore, as Martinez left in free agency last offseason and Arango went on loan to Colombian side Atlético Nacional, but the team did bring in German forward Timo Werner last winter as a designated player.

The club owns and operates PayPal Park, which is also the home venue for Bay FC but has separate ownership.

“We are committed to investing in the team and building a club that consistently competes for championships,” Freeman said. “Off the field, we are equally focused on strengthening our connections with fans and communities in San Jose and throughout the Bay Area. We believe the future of the Earthquakes is incredibly bright.”

The club has roots going back to 1974, when they were founded as a member of the North American Soccer League, which folded in the 1980s. They were reformed in 1994 as a charter member of MLS, beginning competition in 1996. The Quakes won two MLS Cups in their first 10 years before relocating to Houston and being renamed the Dynamo in 2006.

“My family and I have loved owning this club for almost 20 years and we are extremely grateful for the support of our amazing fans as well as the hard work of all of our coaches, players and staff,” Fisher said.

Fisher and former A’s co-owner Lew Wolff paid a $20 million expansion fee when they were awarded the club a year later. Fisher has been the team’s principal owner since 2008, when the team began play in its new iteration of the club that had been in the South Bay since 1974 and won MLS titles in 2001 and 2003.

“John has been a great partner and his leadership and investment helped build a strong foundation for the club,” MLS commissioner Don Garber said. Heath Freeman is an ambitious owner with a strong belief in the Earthquakes and the Bay Area as one of the country’s great soccer markets.”