The new era of sports investment
Sport investment: How private equity investment is fuelling a sports industry revolution: from legacy clubs to women’s leagues.
The business of sport is entering a new era
The business of sport is entering a new era. A combination of shifting social values, evolving media consumption habits, and growing investor interest is reshaping the landscape, with women’s sport at the forefront of this change. Once overlooked by commercial sponsors and investors, women’s professional leagues are now being recognised for their growth potential, audience engagement, and global reach.
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According to Deloitte, the global value of women’s sport is expected to surpass $1 billion in 2024, while in the UK, revenues could reach £1 billion by 2030. Increasingly, private equity firms, family offices and former athletes are investing in women’s teams, drawn by rising valuations and less complex commercial structures. High-profile figures such as tennis super star Serena Williams and basketball legend Kevin Durant have all backed women’s sporting ventures, while new ownership models in the United States and Europe are creating opportunities for wider participation.
Celebrity Influence in Sports Ownership
One of the most widely publicised examples of celebrity investment in sport is actor Ryan Reynolds’ co-ownership of Wrexham AFC alongside Rob McElhenney. Their transformative role at the historic Welsh football club has proved the power of celebrity influence and smart storytelling in driving fan engagement, commercial sponsorship, and global media attention. While not directly involved in women’s sport, Reynolds’ success with Wrexham underscores the wider trend of influential figures investing in undervalued sports properties with growth potential. As the commercial framework around sport expands to include blockchain, digital assets and new fan engagement tools, the way sport is funded and followed is changing rapidly.
High-Profile Investors Driving Women’s Sports Growth
This surge in investment is also exemplified by prominent figures like tennis superstar Serena Williams and her husband Alexis Ohanian who is an American internet entrepreneur and investor. He is best known as the co-founder and former executive chairperson of the social media site Reddit. Their high-profile involvement underscores the increasing recognition and financial commitment fuelling the growth of women’s football worldwide.
In the case of Serena Williams, she is part of a high-profile ownership group that includes celebs such as Natalie Portman, Eva Longoria, and Jennifer Garner. Each is committed to elevating women’s professional football. Meanwhile, Williams husband, Alexis Ohanian, has made a major investment in the Women’s Super League (WSL) by acquiring an estimated 8–10% minority stake in Chelsea Women, valued at approximately £20 million. His stake comes with a seat on the board. Chelsea Women remain majority-owned by BlueCo, the holding company that also controls Chelsea’s men’s team and French side RC Strasbourg. BlueCo is backed by a consortium that includes Clearlake Capital, Mark Walter (CEO of Guggenheim Partners), and Todd Boehly, an American businessperson and part-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Chelsea Women, the reigning WSL champions, recently claimed their fifth consecutive and seventh overall title and are managed by former French international Sonia Bompastor. Together, Williams and Ohanian represent a growing movement of influential investors committing serious capital to the expansion of women’s football globally.
Investment in women’s sport shifting
Investment in women’s sports has seen a remarkable shift in recent years, moving from a largely overlooked market to one that commands significant attention from investors and fans around the world. This change reflects not only the growing economic potential of women’s sport but also wider societal movements towards greater gender equality and diversity. Legal experts from Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, including partners Mark Geday and Louise Skinner in London, Allison D. Gargano in New York, and associate Abbey Brimson in London, have noted how these developments are transforming the commercial landscape of sports investment.
Women’s Sports Emerge as Lucrative Long-Term Investment with Rapid Global Growth
A report by the Morgan, Lewis & Bockius team, which draws on research from The Sports Consultancy and BDO, suggests that women’s sports could offer better long-term investment opportunities than men’s sports. This is partly due to simpler commercial structures that allow greater flexibility and scope for growth. Deloitte forecasts that elite women’s sports will generate around $1 billion in global revenue by 2024, with the value of women’s teams and leagues rising as sponsorship and broadcast deals become more lucrative. While North America is expected to lead much of this growth, research by the Women’s Sports Trust and Two Circles estimates that the UK’s women’s sport market could reach £1 billion in revenue by 2030, outpacing the wider sports industry. Football and basketball are predicted to be the most valuable women’s sports globally, followed by tennis, cricket and motorsports. The Women’s Tennis Association is expected to be a major driver of revenue growth, supported by rising player profiles and growing investor interest. This commercial momentum is matched by increased media coverage and public support, highlighting the expanding appeal and investment potential of women’s sport.
American investment is also increasingly shaping European sports, with high-profile examples like Ryan Reynolds’ co-ownership of Wrexham AFC as aforementioned, capturing global attention. This trend reflects a broader movement of US investors seeking both financial returns and cultural influence by backing historic European clubs and emerging women’s sports teams alike.
Why Big Money is Targeting European Sports
Charlie Dundas is co-founder of the sports and tourism agency GSIQ, winner of the Best Newcomer Awards at the 2025 Sports Industry Awards. He has worked in sports for more than 25 years, starting at IMG and most recently heading up the Sports Division of YouGov comments, “I think there are a few reasons we are seeing this increase in the flow of money from across the Atlantic and, as usual when it comes to sport, some of the motivations are vanity, while others are sanity. For starters, investing in Europe is a very nice way to buy a bit of history. Buying a club with a rich history like Glasgow Rangers is a lot cheaper than buying their New York namesakes. And because of the competitiveness of the sport, it comes with a shot at glory. In Britain or Italy, you can buy into a football club with an enviable heritage much more cheaply than, for example, running up a bill of $6bn like Bill Chisholm has to buy the Boston Celtics. That’s probably why nine out of 20 Italian topflight clubs are now under North American ownership.”
Dundas adds, “From a commercial point of view, it also makes a lot of sense. European leagues can offer stable broadcast deals with competitive terrestrial and OTT markets and ready-made audiences. The Premier League, for example, has created a marketplace for its rights in almost every meaningful territory and that gives owners confidence that they are maximising value from the sale of broadcast.”
“Unlike their US counterparts,” explains Dundas, “European deals offer stadia signage for monetisation via sponsorships. Supporters get a much cleaner view of the action but meanwhile Liverpool are pulling in about £60m a season for their kit deal with Adidas and more still from front-of-shirt sponsorship. What would investors prefer? Add on to that a lack of geographical ‘restraint’ when it comes to marketing the rightsholder or team brand and you have a product that offers US investors plenty of upside right now.”
Stuart Pinnington, Head of Alternative Assets, Jersey, Channel Islands, IQ-EQ, a trust company,offers his view. “Historically, the world of sports investing was seen as out of reach for most investors, with only large institutional investors like CVC and sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) able to get blue-chip assets and partner with brands. There has, however, been a sea change in both the profile of investors and the types of assets available in the market. We’ve seen strong interest in this asset class from both UHNW family offices and from investment managers looking to raise sports-related funds.”
Global Trends in Sports Investment
Pinnington adds a geographic comment, “In Asia, we’re seeing families invest in a range of sports assets including football clubs and baseball teams, but not just the blue-chip branded teams we all recognise. Families are looking at investing in lesser-known teams to support their journey, as well as sports-related assets such as sporting grounds, padel court complexes, and racetracks. Why is this happening? Prestige is part of it, and personal interest in a particular sport or team, but there’s more to it than that. Clients see these businesses as an opportunity to develop brand value, and to redevelop valuable assets such as land in conjunction with other business opportunities like hotels, leveraging community support for other projects.”
“In Europe and the Middle East,” explains Pinnington, “We have clients raising investment funds with a sports focus. The Middle East has long favoured sports clubs as an asset class, but this was led primarily by SWFs. We are now seeing good traction in the region for third-party funds whereby investors can access this asset class with a smaller ticket size. Such funds are targeting European football clubs both in terms of equity and debt funding, which in turn support capital projects of the clubs, player acquisitions and marketing. Outside of the ‘football strategy,’ we’re also seeing clients raising funds focused on motor sports, golf and horse racing.”
Sport as a Strategic Investment
Farouk Egala, solicitor at Schillings deals with cases concerning misuse of private information, and intellectual property disputes. Schillings is a renowned reputational law firm acting for high profile celebrities. Egala says, “Sport has become a serious wealth play. Less a passion project, more a reputational and commercial hedge. For high-net-worth investors, the attraction lies in sport’s unique mix of scarcity, global media rights, and emotional brand equity. We are seeing US private equity flowing into European clubs not just for financial return, but for soft power and platform value. Wrexham is the exception that proves the rule. Meanwhile, women’s sport is reshaping the sponsorship landscape with a more engaged, values driven fan base, and investors are finally pricing that in. Behind the scenes, our work increasingly spans both the risks and rewards that come with sport’s intense public scrutiny: from managing regulatory exposure, mitigating reputational volatility and safeguarding intellectual property, to supporting strategic partnerships, brand expansion, and the commercial opportunities that come with a rising asset class.”
Private Equity Gains Ground in U.S. Sports Amid Recession-Resistant Growth and Rising Valuations
Daniel Render, a partner in Katten’s Sports and Sports Facilities practice, Chicago adds the all-important American view, “From UHNW individuals to family offices to private equity firms, interest in investing in sports has continued to grow in recent years in part because sports has to date tended to be recession-resistant, and valuations of teams have continued to climb regardless of how the stock market or the overall economy performs. Additionally, all American major sports leagues now allow private equity investment, with the latest being the NFL. This asset class gaining access to investing in American sports teams is a recent development over the past 5 years as leagues began to change their rules to allow private equity investments. This coincided with a pivotal moment for the sports industry as the COVID-19 pandemic underscored the advantage to teams and their ownership groups of having access to new sources of capital to maintain and grow operations, facilitate new investment opportunities and create liquidity opportunities for existing investors. Lucrative national media rights deals and emerging revenue streams linked to sports betting have also added to the industry’s continued growth.”
Emerging Sports and New Investment Opportunities
“Finally,” Says Render, “the explosion of niche sports leagues such as pickleball, volleyball and softball and interest in women’s sports leagues has driven meaningful incremental growth in the sports industry. The NWSL and WNBA have seen tremendous growth in team valuations over the past 5 years.” Render represented the Cleveland Browns and its stadium in their 20-year partnership with Huntington National Bank (Huntington Bank) that includes naming rights to the Browns’ stadium, now called “Huntington Bank Field. He also represented a buyer group in purchasing a majority stake in the Charlotte Hornets, ending basketball superstar Michael Jordan’s 13-year majority ownership of the NBA team.
Technology and Digital Innovation in Sports: Merchandising is important for sport as is ticketing
OKX a crypto currency exchange and Blockworks a privately held financial media and information platform focused on the digital asset and crypto space offered a research report looking at the future of sport through their lens. “Finance, technology, brand and consumer goods, and sports and entertainment will be positively disrupted by blockchain in the next 25 years. Blockchain is changing the game and fan experience. OKX is partnered with Manchester City Football Club across a variety of fan engagement verticals, including ‘Unseen City Shirts’ Digital Collectibles: commemorative football shirts that can be minted as digital collectibles (NFTs) on the OKX app and redeemed for exclusive prizes. OKX also partnered with McLaren Racing to create digital collectibles using blockchain technology. McLaren views digital assets as a new way reach younger audiences. Lou McEwen, McLaren Racing’s Chief Marketing Officer said of the partnership: “Our aim is to deepen the connection between our fans allowing them to collect unique items. Blockchain applications are also expected to expand into new areas including sports betting.”
Aswell as this, Sports Illustrated (SI) who are a long-standing and iconic American sports media brand, best known for its magazine, but now also active in digital media, events, and even blockchain-related ventures like NFT ticketing have also moved into NFT’s. ‘Box Office’ is a term commonly used in event ticketing, referring to the physical or online location where tickets are sold. In the context of Sports Illustrated, “Box Office by Sports Illustrated” refers to a next-level event management and primary ticketing platform that combines traditional and NFT tickets, offering lower costs and potentially more revenue for events. NFT Tickets. One of the reasons is cost savings.SI Tickets claims that their platform can save up to 50% on ticket costs compared to other options, potentially leading to more affordable tickets for attendees and increased revenue for event organizers. Major sports teams, esports organizations, MMA companies, and Formula 1 racing teams have also launched fan tokens on the Chiliz blockchain through the Socios platform.
The Future of Sports Investment
As the business of sport enters a transformative new chapter, women’s sport is no longer an afterthought—it is increasingly a focal point for innovation, investment, and influence. From global superstars to institutional investors, the money is following a clear trajectory: toward growth, inclusivity, and untapped potential. With commercial structures maturing, media interest intensifying, and fan engagement deepening, women’s sport stands at the vanguard of a broader reimagining of what sport can offer both financially and culturally.
Closing the Gap: Challenges Persist on the Path to Equality in Women’s Sport
Yet despite this momentum, notable disparities remain. Sponsorship gaps, unequal media coverage, and inconsistent commercial support still mark the landscape—visible even among leading clubs. For women’s sport to truly realise its promise, greater parity in resources, visibility, and infrastructure is essential. Progress is being made, but the journey is far from complete.
The ripple effects, however, are undeniable. Whether through celebrity ownership, digital assets, or emerging transatlantic investment flows, the commercial ecosystem surrounding sport is being redrawn. As new revenue models emerge and technology reshapes how fans connect with their teams, the playing field is being levelled—not just for athletes, but for investors, sponsors, and audiences alike. If the projections hold, women’s sport will not just rival traditional sporting powerhouses—it may well redefine the very business of sport in the 21st century.
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