Private equity firms are competing to build a presence in the growing world of sports. Historically, owning a sports team has been viewed as a billionaire toy. This has changed in recent years as private equity firms have pursued sports-related investment opportunities. While many investments in the sports industry have proven highly lucrative, sports transactions also involve unique challenges and complexities.

The evolving investment landscape in the sports sector has partly been driven by regulatory changes. In 2019, sports leagues started easing restrictions on sports ownership. Major League Baseball (MLB) became the first sports league to allow private equity investors to enter the market. This was followed by similar moves by the National Basketball Association (NBA), Major League Soccer, and the National Hockey League. The NBA eased rules to also allow sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, and university endowments take minority stakes in teams. In 2024, the National Football League (NFL) loosened their rules to allow certain permitted private equity funds to acquire up to 10% stakes in NFL teams.

While many think of investing in the sports industry as buying stakes in sports teams, investments can take a variety of forms. Such deal types may include acquiring minority or majority stakes in sports teams, strategic lending, obtaining sponsorship rights for events or venues, acquiring broadcast rights, and securing royalty revenue streams.

Apollo Global Management, one of the world’s largest private equity firms, launched Apollo Sports Capital in September 2025. Apollo Sports Capital plans to invest in credit and hybrid opportunities in the world of sports. Such opportunities may include buying stakes in sports teams, lending to sports leagues, and investing in live sports events and media rights. Apollo’s funds have invested approximately $17 billion in the sports industry to date, and the launch of Apollo Sports Capital will build upon that foundation.

Entrepreneur Mark Cuban recently launched a sports focused private equity fund called Harbinger Sports Partners. The fund aims to acquire stakes in professional sports franchises and undervalued sports assets. Mr. Cuban personally owns a stake in the Dallas Mavericks basketball team.

Private equity capital has provided a new source of liquidity for the sports industry. This new influx of private equity capital is expected to continue to grow in the coming years. Trends to watch include a growing interest in investments in women’s sports and college sports. The private equity firm Sixth Street, which counts stakes in the San Francisco Giants and the Boston Celtics among its portfolio, invested $125 million in a new National Women’s Soccer League team based in the Bay Area.

There are also growing investment opportunities related to media rights, stadium financing, sports betting, and artificial intelligence and data analytics. Broadcasting rights account for a significant portion of sports league revenues. The rights of media companies to broadcast sports events and content are governed by sports media distribution agreements.

Private equity investors should pay careful attention to any restrictive covenants in sports deals, such as restrictions on purchasing ownership stakes in multiple teams or prohibitions on investing in specific businesses like sports betting. Private equity investors should also be aware of any requirements to provide financial backstops or guarantees in sports deals.