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Crystal Capital Partners · 2026 Report

Private Equity Is Increasingly Influencing the Business of Sports

For the period 2002 to 2024, the average NBA franchise's value grew more than three times as much as the S&P 500's total return, according to PitchBook.

Cumulative Growth, 2002–2024

+1,989%

NBA avg.

Franchise Value

+1,120%

NFL avg.

Franchise Value

+1,071%

NHL avg.

Franchise Value

+807%

MLB avg.

Franchise Value

+587%

S&P 500

Total Return

Source: PitchBook, "Private Capital in Sports: PE Is Up to Bat," May 23, 2025 (data from Sportico, Forbes, and PitchBook; as of December 31, 2024). These figures compare different asset classes with distinct liquidity, valuation methods, access constraints, and risk characteristics and are provided for contextual and illustrative purposes only.

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What's Inside

  • The return picture: cumulative growth 2002–2024 vs. the S&P 500 total return
  • Every major league's PE rules — max stakes, max teams, hold periods
  • Notable deals: Commanders, Celtics, Dolphins, 49ers, Lightning
  • The thesis: scarcity, media rights, multiple revenue channels, resilience, access
  • RASFI — the Ross-Arctos Sports Franchise Index, and what it does (and doesn't) measure
  • Penetration by league: PE-connected share and total franchise value
  • Dedicated multibillion-dollar funds: how managers have raised vehicles purpose-built for sports stakes
  • College: top programs and the $51.22B revenue base
  • The youth-sports opportunity: 27.3M athletes, ~$41B parental spend
  • Streaming & AI: rights inflation and new monetization models
  • Risks to weigh: illiquidity, unproven exits, subjective valuation, event timing

Sources Cited