As sovereign wealth funds begin pumping money into sports teams and leagues across the country, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said Monday he doesn’t see any state-owned investment groups becoming controlling shareholders of NBA teams anytime soon.
According to the NBA’s investment rules, controlling owners of NBA teams must own at least 15 percent of the team.
If a sovereign wealth fund wants to participate, it must make a passive investment worth no more than five percent in the organization. Case in point is Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund, which last month agreed to buy a 5% stake in Monumental Sports and Entertainment, the controlling owner of the Washington Wizards, the WNBA’s Washington Mystics and the NHL’s Washington Capitals.
Still, Silver wants to make sure that the individual is the primary manager of the team.
“I don’t want to say what’s going to happen, but it’s not being considered right now,” Silver said in Las Vegas. “I mean, sovereign wealth funds aside, it’s very important to us that individuals are able to control our team, be accountable to the fans, be accountable to the partners and the players.
“It’s very important for us to have a person (in charge) and that person is independent of the SWF. I think in terms of the connection to the community, connection to the players and other partners in the league.”
One of the most prominent sports-related sovereign wealth funds is Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, which financed LIV Golf. The PGA Tour caused an uproar in the golf world last month when it announced plans to merge with LIV.
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