The price to own a piece of professional sports keeps going up \u2026 and up \u2026 and up.<\/p>\n
The Los Angeles Lakers are in line to be sold at a $12.5 billion valuation<\/a> to former Disney CEO Bob Iger and Joshua Kushner \u2014 a deal that would set a North American pro sports record if Wednesday\u2019s announced agreement is approved by NBA owners.<\/p>\n That it follows Mark Walter\u2019s $10 million purchase valuation for the very same team just 14 months earlier further cements the reality that major pro sports ownership is now the domain of billionaires and institutional investors.<\/p>\n Everything we know about the Lakers being sold again<\/p>\n Dan Woike<\/p>\n The Lakers are a crown-jewel franchise, but teams across major North American sports leagues have been fetching jaw-dropping sale prices in recent years. Here\u2019s a list of the next 10 highest-valued transactions since 2022:<\/p>\n June 2025, Los Angeles Lakers:\u00a0Yes, the Lakers occupy the top two spots on this list. Wednesday\u2019s announced deal followed Walter\u2019s purchase of the team from the Buss family<\/a> at a $10 billion valuation in June 2025. Jerry Buss bought the Lakers for about $68 million from Jack Kent Cooke in 1979. Jerry Buss died in 2013, and the team was solely operated by his family until the sale to Walter.<\/p>\n July 2026, Seattle Seahawks: On the heels of their Super Bowl victory, the Seahawks were sold by the Paul Allen estate for $9.612 billion<\/a> to a group led by the Khosla family, which owns a minority interest in the San Francisco 49ers. Paul Allen bought the team for roughly $200 million in 1997, in part to ensure it stayed in Seattle after another prospective buyer expressed interest in moving the team to Anaheim, Calif.<\/p>\n April 2025, Boston Celtics:\u00a0Here\u2019s how fast prices are rising: When Bill Chisholm, the managing partner of Symphony Technology Group, bought the Celtics for $6.1 billion<\/a> in the spring of 2025 from the Grousbeck family, it was the highest price ever paid for a North American sports franchise. The Lakers deal announced Wednesday is more than double that amount. The Grousbeck family bought the Celtics in 2002 for $360 million.<\/p>\n May 2023, Washington Commanders: A group led by Josh Harris, owner of the Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils, paid $6.05 billion to purchase the Commanders<\/a> from Daniel Snyder. Snyder bought the team in May 1999 for $800 million from the estate of the aforementioned Jack Kent Cooke, who, as noted above, also owned the Lakers at one point.<\/p>\n August 2022, Denver Broncos: The Walton-Penner group\u00a0bought the Denver<\/a>\u00a0Broncos for $4.65 billion<\/a> from a trust that operated the team. Hall of Fame owner Pat Bowlen purchased the Denver franchise from Edgar Kaiser for $78 million in 1984. Bowlen, who passed away in 2019 due to complications of Alzheimer\u2019s disease, had officially relinquished day-to-day control of the organization to the trust six years earlier.<\/p>\n March 2026, Portland Trail Blazers: Carolina Hurricanes owner Tom Dundon threw his hat into the NBA ring with his purchase of the Blazers from Paul Allen\u2019s estate at a $4.25 billion valuation<\/a>. Then came austerity measures from the notoriously frugal Dundon, who let go of the team\u2019s longtime broadcasters<\/a> this summer on top of several other cost-cutting moves. And now he\u2019s engaged in an arena fight<\/a> with the city and county. Allen bought the team for $70 million in 1988.<\/p>\n February 2023, Phoenix Suns and Mercury:\u00a0Billionaire mortgage lender Mat Ishbia and his brother, Justin, purchased a majority stake<\/a> in the NBA\u2019s Phoenix Suns and WNBA\u2019s Phoenix Mercury in a deal that valued the franchise at $4 billion. The Ishbias purchased the team from Robert Sarver, who had been suspended from both teams for a year following the league\u2019s investigation into allegations that he fostered a hostile and toxic work environment. Sarver paid $401 million in 2004 for the Suns\/Mercury.<\/p>\n August 2026, San Diego Padres: This one is not official quite yet. Major League Baseball owners are scheduled to vote Monday on the Padres\u2019 transfer of ownership to a group led by Jos\u00e9 E. Feliciano and Kwanza Jones, The Athletic reported Tuesday. Feliciano and Jones agreed in May to buy the Padres<\/a> at a valuation of $3.9 billion, shattering MLB\u2019s previous sale record of $2.4 billion. The deal must be approved by 22 of 29 owners, who will conduct the vote by conference call. The Padres\u2019 current ownership group \u2014 which consists of at least 10 individuals or entities \u2014 bought the team for $800 million in 2012.<\/p>\n December 2023, Dallas Mavericks:\u00a0 Mark Cuban sold a majority stake in the franchise<\/a> to Miriam Adelson and her family in a deal valued at $3.5 billion. Cuban bought the Mavericks in 2000 for $285 million, and for more than two decades he was as much the face of the Mavericks as any player, coach or executive. He has battled with the new owners over details of the transition. Cuban withdrew a lawsuit<\/a> on Wednesday over the team\u2019s push to develop a new basketball arena.<\/p>\n