LEAGUES & TEAMS
Photo: IPL’s Rajasthan Royals sells at a $1.65B valuation.
75% Rajasthan Royals stake sold to billionaire Lakshmi Mittal family-led group at $1.65B valuation (May 5th)
Mittal family to acquire 75% of the Royals, with Adar Poonawalla taking 18%; deal also includes SA20’s Paarl Royals and CPL’s Barbados Royals [SportsPro]
Top ATP and WTA stars threaten Grand Slam boycott amid escalating fight over rev share and player compensation (May 5th)
Aryna Sabalenka (No. 1), Coco Gauff (No. 4) back potential boycott after players criticized the French Open’s prize pool
Players push for a larger cut of Grand Slam economics (targeting 22% by 2030), alongside greater representation, pensions, and health benefits [FOS]
NFL Players Association sues Leaf Trading Cards over alleged misuse of player NIL and group licensing rights (May 5th)
Lawsuit claims Leaf used six or more NFL players across trading card sets without securing required NFLPA group licensing agreements [Sportico]
UNA Sports Group acquires New York franchises in X Games League as league’s team sales process kicks off (May 5th)
UNA purchases 'summer and winter New York teams for ‘eight-figure sums’, becoming the first ownership group in the X Games League
League CEO Jeremy Bloom hints at additional owners being ‘announced soon’ [SBJ]
Cleveland Browns break ground on $2.6B domed stadium project despite unresolved public funding battle (May 1st)
Browns move forward on Brook Park stadium; $600M in proposed Ohio public funding remains tied up in court challenges
Team to privately fund 67.5%+ of stadium costs plus adjacent $1B mixed-use development [FOS]
Mark Zuckerberg and Tim Cook deny interest in Seattle Seahawks bid amid sale process rumors (Apr. 30th)
Seahawks sale could test NFL franchise valuations and surpass $10B
Rumors tied multiple tech billionaires to the process as investors circle scarce NFL ownership opportunities [Bloomberg]
Dallas Wings expected to play 2027 season at American Airlines Center amid arena and facility delays (May 5th)
Team’s permanent move into renovated Dallas Memorial Auditorium pushed to 2028, while new $81M training facility is expected to open in 2027
Wings are in advanced talks to temporarily play at the 20K-seat AAC, home of the Mavericks and Stars, pending league approval [FOS]
USL reaches tentative CBA agreement with players after protests and lengthy labor negotiations (May 1st)
Proposal raises minimum comp, broader health insurance coverage, and introduces group licensing and prize money provisions through 2030
Deal comes after months of player protests and ahead of USL’s Division One launch and promotion-relegation system beginning in 2028 [FOS]
USL Championship club Sacramento Republic FC reportedly ~3x planned stadium investment to $450M as owner group expands venue ambitions (May 4th)
Wilton Rancheria expands project from 12K-seat, $175M stadium into 20K-seat, canopy-covered venue with enhanced premium seating, and concert capabilities
Ownership cites surging ticket demand, premium hospitality opportunities, and ambitions for MLS expansion [SBJ]
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STARTUPS & VENTURE CAPITAL
Photo: Kalshi raises $1B Series F at a $22B valuation.
Kalshi raises $1B in Series F funding at a $22B valuation (May 7th)
Kalshi to use funds to scale across hedge funds, asset managers, proprietary trading firms, and insurance companies alongside an expanded product suite with block trading capabilities, risk products, and deeper broker integrations
Investment led by Coatue; other investors include Sequoia, Andreessen Horowitz, IVP, Paradigm, Morgan Stanley, and ARK Invest [Kalshi]
Bathhouse, a sauna+cold plunge contrast experience center, raises $35M in funding (May 5th)
Funds will support its LA-based 85K sq ft location, with targeted Chicago, Nashville, and additional NY locations planned
Investment backed by Imaginary Ventures, among others [BeautyIndependent]
SportVot, an AI-powered grassroots sports broadcasting platform, raises ₹32.7 crore (~$3.5M) in funding (Apr. 29th)
Startup enables automated production, streaming, and distribution for amateur and grassroots sports events through AI-driven broadcasting tools
Investment led by IAN Alpha Fund; other investors include Anicut Capital, Let’s Venture, and Capital A, among others [TheEconomicTimes]
Fastbreak AI acquires hotel booking company GroupHousing to expand youth sports travel and event management platform (Apr. 28th)
Adds hundreds of thousands of annual room nights, hotel relationships, and tournament operator contracts onto Fastbreak’s integrated travel platform
GroupHousing founder Mike Bower joins Fastbreak as SVP of Business Development [FastbreakAI]
Life Time, a luxury athletic country club operator, launches the ‘Life Time Innovation Hub’ to incubate and test wellness tech startups across its club network (May 6th)
Prospective startups span post-deck-stage companies in wearables, recovery tech, nutrition platforms, and AI facility mgmt., among others
Startups gain access to opt-in Life Time members at select clubs, live testing environments, and direct leadership feedback, with potential long-term collaboration [Athletech]
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M&A AND INVESTMENTS
Photo: Pickleball Inc. hits a $750M valuation following ASC & Dundon investment.
William Blair enters agreement to acquire sports-focused boutique investment bank Inner Circle Sports (May 5th)
Inner Circle advises across team & league transactions, capital raises, valuations, and debt financing; mandates involving assets like Liverpool FC and the 76ers
Winston & Strawn tapped as legal advisor to William Blair; Solomon Partners tapped as financial advisor, and Willkie Farr & Gallagher as legal advisor to Inner Circle Sports [WilliamBlair]
Apollo Sports Capital and Dundon Capital Partners invest $225M into MLP & PPA Tour parentco Pickleball Inc, at a $750M valuation (May 1st)
Fuels Pickleball Inc’s integrated ecosystem spanning pro leagues, equipment commerce, tournament software, court infrastructure, media, and events
Investment includes rolling up assets Pickleball Central, PickleballTournaments.com, and Just Courts under the Pickleball Inc. umbrella [CNBC]
PIF signals continued sports investments despite LIV Golf funding pullback (May 1st)
PIF reportedly has more sports-related investment announcements expected in the coming weeks
Fund has backed assets including Newcastle Utd, ATP/WTA partnerships, motorsports, and its pending $55B acquisition of EA [SBJ]
Big 12 deepens PE push with RedBird and Weatherford partnership amid mounting college sports financial pressures (May 1st)
Five-year partnership gives the conference $12.5M upfront and allows schools to access $30M capital credit lines without selling equity
Partnership designed to help the grow media, sponsorship, licensing, and athlete NIL-related revenues in race to keep pace with the SEC and Big Ten [Sportico]
Youth sports management platform PlayMetrics acquires SportsEngine from Versant (May 1st)
Expands PlayMetrics’ youth sports operating system push; Versant continues narrowing focus around core media, golf, and sports entertainment verticals
LionTree, Ropes & Gray tapped as financial advisor, legal counsel for PlayMetrics; Lazard and Gibson Dunn tapped as financial advisor, legal counsel for VSNT [Versant]
Teamworks raises growth investment from Hg at $1.5B+ valuation to expand its industry-leading, AI-powered sports operating system (Apr. 28th)
Investment led by Hg, which more than doubled its backing in Teamworks to $200M; participation also included AllianceBernstein [Teamworks]
DAZN acquires end-to-end streaming platform ViewLift amid US growth plans (Apr. 30th)
ViewLift powers DTC streaming products for 15 pro teams, RSNs, and properties like the NHL and LIV Golf, among others [DAZN]
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STRATEGIC VENTURES
Photo: Gatorade partners with Venus Williams to launch a women’s focused sports research hub ‘Body of Science’.
[Prediction Markets] Federal court sides with Kalshi/CFTC against Arizona, Kalshi launches Inner Circle + new customer protection stack, DraftKings doubles down on microbets for prediction markets (May 4th–5th)
Judge permanently blocks AG Kris Mayes’ 20 criminal misdemeanor charges against Kalshi
Kalshi’s additions include social feature ‘Inner Circle’ allowing users to view trading activity; ‘Health Check', sets deposit limits recommendations for unhealthy trading
DK’s Paul Liberman says sports event contracts will become faster, more dynamic; move follows DK’s entry microbet entry via ~$200M Simplebet acquisition [AZMirror] [SBCAmericas] [Kalshi]
Gatorade partners with Venus Williams to launch ‘Body of Science’, a women’s sports health and hydration research initiative (May 4th)
Gatorade Sports Science Institute will study women’s hydration and nutrition needs across life stages including menstruation, pregnancy, and perimenopause
A’ja Wilson and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone among the elite athletes joining the initiative’s launch film [Athletech]
FIFA without 2026 World Cup broadcast deals in India and China weeks before tournament kickoff (May 5th)
Standoffs reportedly center around rights pricing, with reports that FIFA rejected a $20M bid from Jio Hotstar in India while negotiations with China’s state broadcaster CCTV remain unresolved [SportsPro]
LIV Golf hires Ducera, Gibson Dunn, and AlixPartners as the circuit explores new investors and team ownership structures amid PIF-funding pullout (May 4-5th)
Ducera Partners retained alongside law firm Gibson Dunn and advisory firm AlixPartners to support capital strategy, investor outreach, and long-term financial planning
Big Ten Conference disputes media rights ownership of planned Duke-Michigan game slated for Prime Video (May 4th)
Big Ten reportedly told the ACC and ESPN that it owns broadcast rights to the neutral-site matchup at MSG under existing interconference rights-sharing agreement
Follows Duke, ACC, and ESPN’s first-of-its-kind structured scheduling and media arrangement placing the game exclusively on Prime Video [SBJ]
The CW Network and ESPN strike streaming partnership to bring 800+ hours of CW Sports programming to ESPN App (Apr. 30th)
Deal makes ESPN App the exclusive streaming home for CW Sports live events, including ACC, Pac-12, and Mountain West football and basketball, WWE NXT, NASCAR, AVP Volleyball, and PBR Bull Riding [ESPN]
Golden Boy, the Oscar De La Hoya’s boxing promotion company, hires Range Sports for media rights and content strategy advisory (May 5th)
Range to advise on live event media rights, development of new tentpole events, and monetization of its 25K+ hour fight library; also includes scripted/non-scripted content development via Range Studios [SBJ]
SEC approved to use automated ball-strike (ABS) challenge system for 2026 SEC tournament (May 4th)
Tournament to feature MLB-style ABS challenge system, allowing teams to challenge umpire ball and strike calls using automated pitch-tracking tech [ESPN]