Investing 2026: How to Own a Piece of a Pro Sports Team

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It’s a market most investors overlook because it’s scarce and tightly held. But it’s also a huge opportunity that can deliver outsized returns in the years ahead.

No, I’m not talking about critical minerals. I’m talking about investing in professional sports.

There are only 32 teams in the NFL, 30 in the NBA, 30 in Major League Baseball, and 32 in the National Hockey League.

Operating as franchises tightly controlled by the same families for years, sports teams are an asset class everyday investors have struggled to get their hands on.

That’s changing.

At a time when team values roll into the billions, new laws are making it easier for owners to cash in on those record valuations. They’re increasingly selling partial stakes while still maintaining control of the team. There are also owners content to completely cash out.

For example, in April the Boston Celtics sold to a private equity group for $6.5 billion, the largest price ever paid at the time for a professional sports franchise. Just a few months later, that record was shattered in June when businessman Mark Walter paid $10 billion for a majority stake in the Los Angeles Lakers.

It was also a busy year for the NFL, where several team owners sold minority positions; the New York Giants sold a 10% stake, which was a deal that valued the entire team at $10.5 billion.

The good news for the general public is it won’t just be private equity and the ultra-wealthy who can operate as professional sports investors. There’s a growing number of opportunities for retail investors, and we’ll be here to guide you to the most profitable ones.

That’s why today, we’re adding the Sports Asset Class to the Stock Picker’s Corner (SPC) list of investable storylines.

What that means is:

✅More in-depth analysis of publicly traded companies tied to sports; from sports betting tech plays to investing in actual teams and organizations.

✅Premium research on what sports teams and leagues are among the most coveted assets globally.

✅And our signature approach applied to sports that finds opportunities others overlook.

In our research service, SPC Premium, members have seen two sports ideas from our Special-Situation Portfolio; one is up 30% since last September and viewed as a prime buy-out candidate. As part of that work, I’ve also been tracking Madison Square Garden Sports Corp. $MSGS ( ▼ 2.02% ) since last November for all of our readers.

Madison Square Sports is a story of scarcity, and we’ll look at why that scarcity could soon command a premium.

The Big Business of Sports 

Madison spun off its entertainment division — Madison Square Entertainment Corp. $MSGE ( ▼ 2.17% ) — back in 2020 to focus on its sports assets, the New York Knicks, New York Rangers, and two development teams.

According to Forbes, the Knicks are the third-most valuable NBA team at $9.7 billion, while CNBC says the Rangers are the second-most valuable NHL team at $3.8 billion.

This points to a broader trend that’s worth mentioning as a proof point for the Knicks and Rangers to only increase in value. Despite stubborn inflation and poor consumer sentiment, sports remain an affordable luxury.

For the 2025-2026 season, the NBA expects $14.3 billion in revenue. That’s a 12% increase from last season’s totals, according to the sports business reporting site Sportico.

Hockey isn’t doing so bad, either.

As you can see in the Statista chart below, after a few down years because of COVID-19 limiting live events, revenue for the NHL is on a continuous march higher.

For the 2024-2025 season, revenue increased to an average of $243 million across the NHL’s 32 teams, a 9% boost from the previous season.

So Madison Square Garden Sports has not one, but two highly coveted assets that are only increasing in value.

What’s been holding shares back from really taking off has been tepid investor sentiment stemming from what some refer to as the “Dolan Discount,” which is based on CEO James Dolan’s refusal to sell any of Madison’s assets.

If he did, he could unlock shareholder value.

Jon Boyar, president of the research and investment advisor firm Boyar Value Group, believes the shares are worth $500, according to Barron’s. That’s about 96% higher than where they’re trading at right now. Back in June, Boyar even published an open letter, urging Dolan to sell or spin off the Knicks and Rangers.

Thanks to a tax law change in 2027, that sale or spin off could happen.

Next year, the ability for sports team owners to immediately write off 100% of the costs of new or used assets comes to an end.

Team owners will lose near-term tax shields, as they’ll have to deduct those asset costs over many years instead of immediately. Boyar believes some of these tax changes could entice Dolan to make a move (or a series of moves), telling Barron’s: “MSGS is one of the best risk/reward setups in the market today.”

Final Thoughts 

This is a type of special-situation investment, with the catalyst of a sale or spin-off sending shares higher.

The key is positioning yourself ahead of that catalyst sparking.

While we’re not technical traders and don’t try to time entry points, one useful technical indicator to watch is the Relative Strength Index (RSI).

The RSI is like a speedometer for a stock’s price action. It tells you if the stock has been running too fast in one direction. When the number is high (usually above 70), it means the stock may have overheated and be prone to a pause or pullback. When it’s low (below 30), it means the stock might be oversold and could rebound.

For MSGS, according to the stock insight provider GuruFocus, the 14-day RSI is 67.01, meaning shares are close to being overheated. Over the last month alone, MSGS has climbed 13%. If that RSI number drops closer to 30 and you see a pullback, you could consider a foundational stake.

We’ll keep tracking Madison Square Garden Sports for you, as well as this new Sports Asset Class storyline.