Coin World reports: Now watching video 3:57 Wall Street scores street cheers. Women’s soccer is currently excluding private equity. While other major U.S. sports leagues—the Major League Soccer, National Basketball Association, Major League Baseball, and National Hockey League—allow private equity investors to hold passive minority stakes, only the National Women’s Soccer League allows these companies to gain majority economic control. NWSL Commissioner Jessica Berman said in an interview with CNBC: “We do indeed see institutional capital as a way to truly inject additional capital into our assets.” Last year, Sixth Street was the first to own the San Francisco women’s team Bay Football Club. At that time, the company paid a record $54 million for the league’s 14th franchise. A few weeks ago, Carlyle collaborated with the men’s team Seattle Sounders FC to acquire the city’s NWSL rival Reign FC, which is the second such transaction in history. The deal valued Reign at $58 million, far exceeding the $3.5 million five years ago. As part of the transaction, Sounders FC owner Adrian Hanauer serves as a director of Reign FC on the NWSL board, while Carlyle’s head of private credit, Alex Popov, serves as an alternate director. Popov said that NWSL’s attendance has grown by more than 40% this year, proving the momentum of the sport. Popov said: “We have seen this turning point, and we see that the reason is right.” “To continue to grow, we all have a lot of work to do.”
The Reign’s Chief Business Officer Maya Mendoza-Exstrom stated that this investment aligns with “the intrinsic value of women’s sports.” She said that Carlyle brought abundant resources to the game, which could add value in analysis and share expertise from other portfolio companies. Mendoza-Exstrom said in an interview: “So we have to make wise choices.” “We must operate a sustainable business that creates multiple times the revenue in a very short time and launches a better product on the field.” Deloitte stated that this year, women’s elite sports revenue is expected to break the billion-dollar mark for the first time. Popov said that soccer accounts for about half of this figure. Women’s sports revenue is more inclined towards merchandise sales, ticket sales, partnerships, and sponsorships, while men’s sports revenue comes more from broadcasting rights. However, in November, NWSL signed a media agreement worth $240 million for four years, 40 times higher than the league’s previous agreement, although it is still a small part of the revenue that Major League Soccer gets from broadcasting rights. Nevertheless, for many private equity management companies seeking deals in the NWSL, including Carlyle, the smooth sailing of the broadcasting industry is a key bullish argument. Insiders revealed that Disney CEO Bob Iger and his wife Willow Bay are about to acquire Angel City Football Club with a valuation of $250 million. This valuation will break the valuation record of women’s sports franchises. NWSL declined to comment on the potential deal of Angel City Football Club. With valuations continuing to rise, private equity’s interest in the sport is likely to continue. However, the league is still in the trial phase. Commissioner Berman said: “We act cautiously because institutional capital is very different from the type of individual owners who usually manage teams in local markets.” “Many leagues are looking at our experience to see how things are going and whether there is a way to continue to adjust the way institutional capital invests in sports.” The NBA, MLB, NHL, and MLS allow private equity to hold up to 30% of the shares. This issue has also been hotly debated in the National Football League (NFL). NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said in May that the league is making “real progress” on this issue, and people are very interested in this field.
