Private equity changing sports world

[Auggie]

S.F. teams part of trend that means stadium upgrades but higher prices

San Francisco Chronicle / 8-31-2025

The thread connecting the San Francisco Giants and Bay FC (Women's soccer) is Sixth Street Partners, a politically connected private equity firm managing a $115 billion portfolio. The company, headquartered in (San Francisco's) Presidio and with offices worldwide, increasingly invests in sports — it bought a controlling interest in Bay FC in 2023 and paid an estimated $380 million in March for a 10% share of the Giants.

Another local example: The Golden State Warriors, motivated by a sudden plunge in revenues during the pandemic, struck two deals with Arctos, a Dallas-based private equity firm with a sprawling sports presence. Arctos owns about 13% of the Warriors, a share now worth an estimated $1.2 billion.

The Giants and Warriors highlight a growing trend driven by the soaring values of pro franchises. Sixth Street also has invested in the San Antonio Spurs and Boston Celtics; Spanish soccer powerhouses Real Madrid and FC Barcelona; and Legends, a stadium operations business launched by the Dallas Cowboys and New York Yankees. Arctos bought minority stakes in 19 franchises in baseball, football, basketball, hockey, and men’s and women’s soccer in the U.S. as well as Champions League winner Paris Saint-Germain in France.

This all has happened in the past five-plus years, as the NBA, MLB, NFL and NHL loosened longtime rules prohibiting private equity and as franchise values skyrocketed. The Warriors, purchased by Joe Lacob and Peter Guber for $450 million in 2010, are now worth a league-high $9.4 billion, according to CNBC; the Giants now are valued at $4 billion, fifth in baseball, per Forbes.

Link (paywall): https://eedition.sfchronicle.com/infinity/article_popover_share.aspx?guid=c09433ea-35f5-477f-9eb8-3a3dd7f7b9de&share=true


From the link:

• MLB allowed institutional investments in 2019. The NBA and NHL followed in 2021 in part because of the pandemic.

• According to investiment experts, private equity was drawn to sports because “in recent years, U.S. sports leagues have generated a higher return than the S&P 500."

• More teams enriched with private-equity investment could pursue real estate projects adjacent to their venues, experts say. Some of these projects might morph into an “integrated resort,” complete with hotels, restaurants and gaming, i.e., casinos.

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And, don't think for a second that broadcast and streaming rights will not escape the greed of private equity bean counters. They're going to demand top dollar to see the biggest markets. We are very, very close to more expensive pay-per-view IMO.

[Hey Joe]

1. P.E. will most likely do for sports in general

what it has done to the many businesses it has purchased or managed.
Destroy them.
The mind bending greed of practically every business entity in this country is disgusting.
I wish I had the means to get out of this country.

[Auggie]

3. According to the link, league rules forbid them from majority ownership ...

for now. Don't be surprised when that changes.

Then there will be no stopping them from optimizing everything for profit.

[GiqueCee]

2. Private Equity...

... should be wiped off the face of the Earth for all eternity. They hijacked their business model from the Mafia, and they destroy everything they touch.