Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice joins Denver Broncos’ new ownership group

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has joined the incoming ownership group for the Denver Broncos.

Rice, who has also served as the national security adviser as well as provost of Stanford University, lived in Denver during her childhood and received a bachelor’s degree and her doctorate from the University of Denver.

In June, a group led by Walmart heir Rob Walton that includes Walton’s daughter. Carrie Walton Penner; her husband, Greg Penner; and Mellody Hobson, co-CEO of Ariel Investments and chair of the board for Starbucks Corp., agreed to purchase the Broncos for $4.65 billion.

In a statement Monday, Walton said: “We’re pleased to welcome former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to our ownership group. A highly respected public servant, accomplished academic and corporate leader, Secretary Rice is well known as a passionate and knowledgeable football fan who has worked to make the sport stronger and better. She is the daughter of a football coach and served on the inaugural College Football Playoff Committee. … Her unique experience and extraordinary judgment will be a great benefit to our group and the Broncos organization.”

The sale of the team, which was for a record price paid for a North American sports franchise, is under review by the NFL and must be approved by a full vote of the NFL owners in the coming weeks. Twenty-four yes votes are needed for the sale to be formally approved.

It was expected to take 60 to 90 days for the sale to be approved and the deal to be closed.

The Walton-Penner group was, according to multiple sources, one of four groups that had advanced to the second round of bidding for the team in early June. The Broncos have been one of the NFL’s most successful franchises in the Super Bowl era, with three Super Bowl wins in Pat Bowlen’s ownership tenure, and they now have an ownership group with some of the deepest pockets.

It is expected Greg Penner and Carrie Walton Penner will have…