A new J.P. Morgan 23 Wall study suggests sport has moved from passion purchase to planned allocation, as more billionaire families buy teams, finance stadiums and insist on active control.
The world’s richest families are recasting sport as a serious business rather than a status trophy, according to J.P. Morgan’s 2025 Principal Discussions Report.
“Sports have gone from being a wealthy individual’s hobby to a really serious business,” the report says. The sentiment matches a measurable shift in portfolios, with one in five families interviewed now owning a sports team and sport ranking among the top five sectors for new investment focus.
The study, based on 111 hour-long interviews with billionaire principals across 28 countries between March and August 2025, finds that specialty assets are being reweighted. Sports teams and arenas lead the category at 34% ownership among families that discussed specialty assets, ahead of art and cars.
Families still describe yachts and planes as consumption rather than investments, but sport stands apart due to perceived durability of value and control over outcomes. “We’re overallocated to sports, but it’s been phenomenal,” says one principal.
That reweighting sits inside a broader pivot to private markets, where nearly 70% of principals now prefer active roles through governance and board seats. Sports reflects the same owner mindset. As one principal says, “we see ourselves as owners, not just investors,” and many prefer majority or lead positions to influence strategy and operations.
In March, the NBA approved the $6.1bn sale of the Boston Celtics to private-equity mogul Bill Chisholm, the richest price for a US sports team to date, eclipsing the Commanders’ 2023 mark.
The preference for meaningful control is visible in Europe too: in 2024 Sir Jim Ratcliffe acquired 27–29% of Manchester United and took charge of football operations, pairing minority equity with operational control and a further $300m infrastructure commitment
Institutional money, institutional methods
Deal flow is increasingly institutional, but still relationship led. Families report that personal networks drive access to opportunities, with banks and selected family office channels also important. To execute, they mirror private equity disciplines in diligence and structuring.
The report details a case where J.P. Morgan structured a bespoke personal loan to finance 100% of a client’s equity contribution for a team acquisition, coupled with team-level debt and guidance on a longer-term stadium financing plan.
This is consistent with what rights-holders are seeing on the ground. The families in the study are not passive chequebooks. They arrive with capital stacks, preferred governance rights and a road map for venue development, often seeking co-investors who bring industry expertise.
The Intuit Dome – the LA Clippers’ new arena – opened in August 2024 as a $2bn-plus, privately financed project by owner Steve Ballmer, illustrating how billionaire owners now bring full capital stacks to venue builds rather than relying on public subsidy.
For clubs and leagues, that means packaging control, clarity over board access and a credible capex plan for infrastructure has become table stakes.
Why sport, why now
Beyond financial return, principals cite family unity, multigenerational legacy and community impact. The report records women owners “level the playing field” by investing in women’s sport and articulates a long horizon for value creation.
As one principal argues, “Twenty years from now, people will not believe that you could acquire a women’s team for $100 million.” The human element remains central. In May, the New York Liberty sold a minority stake at a record $450m valuation, with proceeds earmarked for a new practice facility – the highest mark yet for a women’s pro team.
Weeks earlier, Alexis Ohanian bought 10% of Chelsea Women for £20m, valuing the WSL champions at £200m and adding an investor-board member who has publicly argued women’s clubs can reach $1bn valuations in time.
The macro picture
The tilt to sport sits within a larger pattern: twice as many families are increasing private investment exposure as are reducing it.
The supply of public companies has shrunk in the US over three decades while private equity ownership has expanded, and families have leaned into that shift with patient capital and fewer liquidity constraints.
In sector terms, real estate, technology and energy top the list, but sport now features alongside consumer as a priority focus.
