The Lakers conscionable sold for $12.5 billion, 25% much than past year’s grounds sale. What’s driving the abrupt value surge?
By Jon Small | edited by Dan Bova | Aug 17, 2026
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
Bob Iger and Joshua Kushner conscionable bought the Los Angeles Lakers for $12.5 billion, a caller grounds for an NBA squad and 25% much than the franchise sold for conscionable past year. It’s the latest successful a tally of eye-popping sports sales, pursuing past month’s $9.6 cardinal waste of the Seattle Seahawks.
Two forces are feeding sports franchise fever, according to the New York Times. TV authorities are worthy acold much than they utilized to beryllium (the NBA’s existent 11-year broadcast woody is worthy astir $77 billion) and sports betting’s legalization opened an wholly caller gross stream. There’s besides a increasing belief that unrecorded sports are 1 of the fewer things AI won’t disrupt.
Not everyone’s thrilled astir it. Podcaster and media fig Bill Simmons called the shape “bonkers,” comparing squad income to flipping a mansion and informing of an era wherever teams go “giant hedge money plays.” University of Maryland sociologist David Andrews has raised akin concerns, though he notes fans don’t look to beryllium turning distant yet: “Sport is the goose that laid the aureate egg,” he told the Times. “For immoderate reason, the goose is benignant of still alluring, and we’re still enchanted by the crippled contempt its hyper-financialization.”
Bob Iger and Joshua Kushner conscionable bought the Los Angeles Lakers for $12.5 billion, a caller grounds for an NBA squad and 25% much than the franchise sold for conscionable past year. It’s the latest successful a tally of eye-popping sports sales, pursuing past month’s $9.6 cardinal waste of the Seattle Seahawks.
Two forces are feeding sports franchise fever, according to the New York Times. TV authorities are worthy acold much than they utilized to beryllium (the NBA’s existent 11-year broadcast woody is worthy astir $77 billion) and sports betting’s legalization opened an wholly caller gross stream. There’s besides a increasing belief that unrecorded sports are 1 of the fewer things AI won’t disrupt.
Not everyone’s thrilled astir it. Podcaster and media fig Bill Simmons called the shape “bonkers,” comparing squad income to flipping a mansion and informing of an era wherever teams go “giant hedge money plays.” University of Maryland sociologist David Andrews has raised akin concerns, though he notes fans don’t look to beryllium turning distant yet: “Sport is the goose that laid the aureate egg,” he told the Times. “For immoderate reason, the goose is benignant of still alluring, and we’re still enchanted by the crippled contempt its hyper-financialization.”
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