From Lakers To Chelsea: A List Of The Most Expensive Team Purchases In Sports History

Last Updated:June 20, 2025, 14:10 IST

Given the Lakers' reportedly historic sale, it begs the question: what are the most expensive team purchases in sports history?

(Credit: X)

The Buss family agreed on Friday to sell the Los Angeles Lakers, who have clinched 17 NBA championships, to financier Mark Walter in a landmark deal valuing the franchise at $10 billion.

Walter is the CEO of Guggenheim Partners, a global financial services firm managing over $325 billion in assets.

He led the group that acquired the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2012, as reported by The Athletic, and currently holds the controlling share in the baseball team.

Now, this begs the question. What are the most expensive team purchases in sports history?

Well, look no further, for we have listed the top 10 most expensive sports team buys in history here:

1. Los Angeles Lakers (NBA): Majority stake sold to Mark Walter, valuing franchise at about $10 billion (June 2025)
2. Boston Celtics (NBA): Sold to private equity investor Bill Chisholm for $6.1 billion (March 2025)
3. Washington Commanders (NFL): Sold to a group led by Josh Harris for $6.05 billion. Harris is co-founder of private equity firm Apollo Global Management (July 2023)
4. Chelsea Football Club (Premier League – UK): Sold to an investment group led by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital for $5.3 billion (May 2022)
5. Denver Broncos (NFL): Sold to Walmart heir Rob Walton for $4.65 billion (August 2022)
6. Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury (NBA, WNBA): Sold to billionaire mortgage lender Matt Ishbia (December 2022)
7. Milwaukee Bucks (NBA): Sold to Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy and Dee Haslam for $3.5 billion (April 2023)
8. Brooklyn Nets (NBA): Sold to Chinese billionaire Joe Tsai for $3.3 billion (September 2019)
9. New York Mets (MLB): Sold to investor Steve Cohen for $2.4 billion (November 2020)
10. Minnesota Timberwolves (NBA): Sold to investor group led by Mark Lore and Alex Rodriguez for $1.5 billion (April 2025)

(with agency inputs)

Siddarth Sriram

After training in the field of broadcast media, Siddarth, as a sub-editor for News18 Sports, currently dabbles in putting together stories, from across a plethora of sports, onto a digital canvas. His long-term...Read More

After training in the field of broadcast media, Siddarth, as a sub-editor for News18 Sports, currently dabbles in putting together stories, from across a plethora of sports, onto a digital canvas. His long-term...

Read More

News18 Sports brings you the latest updates, live commentary, and highlights from cricket, football, tennis, badmintion, wwe and more. Catch breaking news, live scores, and in-depth coverage. Also Download the News18 App to stay updated!

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