Why Private Equity Loves Sports (And is Investing in It)

The largest PE firms in the world all have sports plays now…

• KKR ($638B AUM): Varsity Brands, PlayOn, LeagueApps

• Blackstone ($1T AUM): Manchester United, Nike, Overtime

• Apollo ($512B AUM): Yahoo Sports, Liga MX, others

• Ares ($378B AUM): Miami Dolphins, Inter Miami, McLaren Racing

• EQT ($224B AUM): Sportradar, The Baller League, IMG Academy

• CVC ($186B AUM): LaLiga, Gujarat Titans, WTA, Premiership Rugby

• Silver Lake ($102B AUM): Endeavor, City Football Group, Diamond Baseball

This was nearly unthinkable not too long ago…

But sports is now seen as a prime asset class—one that is non-correlated to traditional markets and protected from technological innovations.

Let’s Dive In 👇

The PE Investor Map

This is one of the most important images in all of sports:

(because understanding who the main players are, what their strategies look like, and where their portfolios are shifting gives you a front-row seat to how sports is evolving).

For example:

• CVC Capital is stacking league ownership (LaLiga, WTA, Rugby, IPL teams).
• Silver Lake is betting on multi-club ownership (Diamond Baseball Holdings, City Football Group).
• Ares and Arctos are making big bets on major teams and integrating them with global IP.

And while the market map circulating above is solid…

It is still missing some key players that are under the radar (and doesn’t show the relationships between some of the firms).

How Private Money Flows

It’s a shame that there is so little discussion in traditional education about money (and that so few of us actually take the time to become self-educated on it).

Especially since it dictates a lot in our lives…as Wu-Tang famously put it, “Cash Rules Everything Around Me.”

Since the start of the year, I’ve been diving deep into the topic, and it’s greatly influenced how I navigate on the personal and business side.

Because once you start to understand it…you start to understand how to best position yourself (especially in the world most of us play in, which is private equity).

Here is how private money flows downstream:

Sovereign Wealth Funds
Central Banks & Monetary Authorities
Endowment Funds
Pension Funds
Insurance Companies
Superannuation Funds
Foundations & Trusts
Ultra-High-Net-Worth Individuals (UHNWIs)
Family Offices
Fund-of-Funds (FoFs)

Invest in ⬇
Private Equity Funds
Mega Buyout Funds
Mid-Market Buyout Funds
Growth Equity Funds
Distressed & Special Situations Funds
Real Assets/Infrastructure Funds
Venture Capital (VC) Funds
Angel Investors & Syndicates
Hedge Funds
SPACs (Special Purpose Acquisition Companies)
Secondaries Funds

Invest in ⬇
Operating Companies & Startups
Founders, Employees & Executives

A real-world sports example

1. Sovereign Wealth Fund has oil money
2. It deploys into CVC, a large generalist PE firm
3. CVC then deploys into Bruin Capital, a smaller sports PE firm
4. Bruin Capital then deploys into Courtside, a sports VC firm
5. Courtside then deploys into Seed and Series A sports companies

Follow the money.

All capital flows downstream from sovereign wealth, to institutional capital, to private equity, to venture capital.

And since PE is now making bets on the sports space, you can see how this ripples throughout the chain.

So Why Is PE Betting Big on Sports?

Every week, we see some new headline for a major deal and billions flowing into sports…

But why on earth do they care about the asset class?

I think there are a handful of reasons, but they all come back to three core things:

1. Media Rights Inflation

Live sports remain the most valuable real estate in media. Unlike traditional entertainment, sports are immune to on-demand streaming disruptions.

Rights deals for top leagues continue to surge, with new bidders (Amazon, Apple, Netflix) entering the market.

Private equity firms are positioning themselves to capitalize on these long-term contracts, often using media rights as collateral for financing bigger deals.

2. Built-In Global Fandom

Unlike most industries, sports brands have generational loyalty. Fans don’t switch teams like they switch phone brands.

This makes sports properties incredibly resilient, with a guaranteed baseline of revenue from merchandise, ticketing, sponsorships, and content.

PE firms see this as a reliable hedge against economic downturns.

3. Global Scalability & Expansion

Leagues are expanding internationally, teams are becoming global brands, and emerging sports properties are creating entirely new markets.

Private equity sees an opportunity to accelerate this expansion, investing in leagues, franchises, and infrastructure to build the next generation of sports ecosystems.

Looking Ahead

I believe we’re in the early innings of where sports are going…

Attention will eventually shift away from assets with minimal explosive growth left…like the MLB and NHL.

And will head towards untapped opportunities: Africa, college sports for India, etc

Some trends I anticipate:

• More Institutional Capital: Expect more pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, and endowments to follow private equity into sports, viewing it as a long-term asset play.
• More Multi-Club Ownership (MCO): PE firms will push to optimize franchise value through multi-club ecosystems, mirroring the City Football Group model across sports.
• AI, Data & Fan Monetization: Sports is moving beyond the field—expect PE firms to double down on companies innovating in fan data, AI scouting, and next-gen sports betting.
• Alternative Sports & Media Play: The rise of niche leagues, athlete-led brands, and content-driven sports properties will become the next hot investment category.

Private equity is in the process of entering sports—things will get interesting once it starts trying to reshape it.

And for those who can track these moves early, there’s an opportunity to position themselves ahead of the next wave of innovation, ownership, and value creation in sports.

Exciting times are ahead!