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Private Equity Professional Sports: Now and the Future

Richard Janvrin by Richard Janvrin, April 28, 2026

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For so long, professional sports ownership involved billionaires, small ownership groups, or in cases like the Pittsburgh Steelers, it’s all been in one family. However, nowadays, if you were to search for”private equity professional sports,” there would be plenty of examples across teams, leagues, and pro sports.

These firms have been getting involved via minority ownership stakes, long-standing partnerships, and more.

According to S&P Global,”private equity and venture capital-backed transactions in sports services totaled $6.33 billion globally in the first three quarters of 2025, the highest in at least eight years,” so it’s only growing.

Thus, sports franchises are slowly turning from passionate owners into an asset on a spreadsheet.

That said, below, we’ll examine the concepts of”private equity pro sports,””private equity sport investment,” and more.

Get to Know the Money and Rules

While a lot of industries make it relatively easy for private equity to be involved, that hasn’t been the case with sports ownership. The leagues not only regulate the terms of play on the field, but also how ownership is structured.

With that, the concept of”private equity professional sports” has begun to adapt.

Private equity hasn’t yet tried to take controlling stakes; instead, it holds minority positions in teams and has little to no voting power.

The leagues have historically imposed caps on this type of ownership percentage-wise, enforced holding periods, and more.

However, in 2024, there was a chance in the NFL. The league began allowing private equity to purchase up to a 10% stake under strict conditions.

The firms that were first allowed to do so were Ares Management, Arctos Partners, Sixth Street, and a consortium comprising Blackstone, Carlyle, CVC, Dynasty Equity, and Ludis. They planned to invest $12 billion and could invest in up to six NFL teams each.

So, as time has gone on, the”wall” for”private equity pro sports” has turned more so into a”gate.”

This is similar to the rise of online sports betting sites.

We’ll see how long these current frameworks last.

Deal Structures

To better understand the idea of”private equity sports franchises,” let’s look at how the current deals are shaking out.

These include minority equity, rights-holder partnerships, and other financial instruments.

  • Minority Equity: As mentioned above, the NFL now allows private equity in sports, and private equity firms can purchase up to a 10% stake. They have no operational control, but they’re involved with a long-term asset that’ll surely deliver a return on their investment as the NFL and other leagues grow in popularity.
  • Rights-Holder Partnerships: These can span decades and involve investors funding leagues or competitions in exchange for a share of future earnings.
  • Structured Instruments: These can include convertible shares or asset-backed financing.

Private equity tends to do a lot of leveraged buyouts, meaning they make acquisitions using borrowed money, and that is not something a professional lead would allow to happen.

Sports Are Like Infrastructure to PE Investors

For private equity firms, sports investments are similar to infrastructure investments in that revenue streams are fairly predictable and stable. This is due to teams and leagues having media partnerships, sponsorships, premium seating deals, and more. What makes that even more attractive is that those deals can span decades.

Also, stadiums are no longer just structures built for sports teams. These include full-on shopping venues and more. For example, SoFi Stadium, home of the Los Angeles Chargers and Rams, has a pedestrian area and a YouTube Theater.

So, the appeal extends beyond sports to media, data, engagement platforms, and more.

Real-Life Case Studies

Here are some examples of transactions that have happened in the”private equity pro sports” space:

  • Silver Lake invested $500 million into City Football Group.
  • CVC Capital invested more than $2 billion in LaLiga.
  • Arctos Sports Partners received a 5.5% stake ($5.5 billion valuation) in the Golden State Warriors.
  • Ares Management and others received a total of 13% (10% to Ares; 3% to the others) in the Miami Dolphins.
  • Sixth Street acquired a 3% stake in the New England Patriots, becoming the fourth NFL team to add private equity to its ownership structure.
  • Bill Chisholm’s investment group, along with Sixth Street, bought the Boston Celtics for over $6 billion.

The Cultural Tension of Private Equity in Sports

While sports are a business, they’re not your typical type of business. For many, sports are a part of their identity. They’re entrenched in communities, tradition, and symbols.

So, with an entity like private equity getting involved, this can hurt that view. Strategies that would typically be part of the private equity, such as raising ticket prices or constant commercialization, would alienate fans. Of course, private equity doesn’t have that stranglehold on sports yet, but it’s certainly understandable for fans to be afraid of it.

In fact, there are times when the owners are characters within the entire organization. For example, Steve Bisciotti of the Baltimore Ravens has a unique personality, and everyone knows him as the owner. If it weren’t him, but rather some private equity firm, that relatability would be gone.

In some cases of private equity sports franchises, though, there have been fan protests, such as in Germany, where a potential investor backed out of the deal due to public pressure.

As mentioned, private equity firms may not have decision-making power, but they can certainly pressure for maximum return on investment.

What Comes Next

While we don’t really know what’ll come next regarding private equity in professional sports, the common-sense answer is that minority ownership stakes could increase, and while there will still be constraints, those could change over time.

On a positive note, it could see a rise in investment in women’s sports.

It would also make sense for private equity firms to enter markets such as sports betting, streaming, and data, though investing in betting could be considered a conflict of interest.

As mentioned before, sports aren’t just any other business. The almighty dollar isn’t always the end-all, be-all. Trust, the community, and competitive balance are more important.

The hope for fans is that teams that get involved with private equity would have that conversation, and the firm coming in would understand.

So, while “private equity sports franchises” somewhat exist, fans will be looking to see whether sports will remain sports or slowly morph into just another asset on a spreadsheet.

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