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Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Co. and Qatar Investment Authority executives have explored the possibility of buying minority stakes in NBA teams, per Ben Bartenstein, Giles Turner and Dinesh Nair of Bloomberg.
Those investment firms are searching for potential matches with NBA teams, and Bloomberg posited that the New York Knicks could be a target:
“The team is owned by Madison Square Garden Sports Corp., which is controlled by the Dolan family. MSGS’s biggest equity shareholder is investment firm Silver Lake Management, which has strong ties with Abu Dhabi, and is a co-investor in Premier League giant Manchester City. Speaking on an earnings call this month, MSGS president David Hopkinson said the company was open to selling a minority stake in the Knicks.”
Per Kim Bhasin of Bloomberg News and Bloomberg Businessweek, sovereign wealth funds are allowed up to a 20 percent stake:
Kim Bhasin @KimBhasin
NBA teams are becoming an investment target for gulf sovereign wealth funds.
Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Co. and Qatar Investment Authority have expressed their interest in NBA ownership. Such funds are allowed to own up to 20% of a team.https://t.co/8b6D6EiAtB
According to Marc Vartabedian of the Wall Street Journal, Qatar Investment Authority was reportedly part of a $3 billion bid from venture capital companies Thiel Capital and Shasta Ventures to purchase the Phoenix Suns and Mercury for $3 billion.
The teams eventually went to billionaire mortgage lender Mat Ishbia for $4 billion.
Per Sam Wallace and Tom Morgan of the Telegraph on Monday, Qatar Investment Authority plans to bid for Manchester United in its entirety by the end of this week.
