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Nintendo to sell majority stake in Seattle Mariners

Initial $125 million deal was struck in 1992 by legendary president Hiroshi Yamauchi

Nintendo of America will sell its majority stake in the Seattle Mariners baseball team, ending a period of 24 years as its owner.

According to a report in the Seattle Times, Nintendo of America will retain a 10 per cent stake in the Mariners, while selling the rest of its holdings to the First Avenue Entertainment (FAE) ownership group. FAE also owns a majority interest in the regional media network, ROOT Sports. The deal values the group's holdings at $1.4 billion.

In a statement released yesterday, Mariners CEO Howard Lincoln - who was formerly chairman of Nintendo of America - expressed regret at never having hosted a World Series. However, Nintendo's other goal during its 24 years as owner was, "to assure the permanence of the team in this great city. And on that count, I am proud and gratified that this agreement further solidifies that goal.

Nintendo's involvement began when longstanding president Hiroshi Yamauchi acquired a majority stake for $125 million in 1992, a time when the team was struggling and facing relocation. Yamauchi transferred ownership of the Mariners to Nintendo of America in 2004.

The sale arrives at a point of transition for Nintendo, hot on the heels of a disappointing financial year and the promise of new hardware to come.

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Matthew Handrahan

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Matthew Handrahan joined GamesIndustry in 2011, bringing long-form feature-writing experience to the team as well as a deep understanding of the video game development business. He previously spent more than five years at award-winning magazine gamesTM.