2026-08-18
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Finance & Investments
Todd Boehly and Mark Walter are exploring the sale of their 12.8% stakes to private equity firm Clearlake Capital, the club's 61.5% majority owner.
The potential move follows strained relations between the partners, who originally bought the English soccer club for £2.3B in 2022.
This follows Walter recently selling his Los Angeles Lakers ownership for $12.5B while facing a federal investigation into his insurance businesses.
Investment firms Inovia Capital and Deloitte Ventures co-led the $8.7M funding round to support the growing technology startup.
Peripheral builds spatial intelligence software, a specialized technology that creates highly immersive and interactive experiences for live sporting events.
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Media, Broadcasting & Sponsorships
Advertisers spent $2.11B on NBA games in 2025-26, up 38% from $1.53B the prior season.
The league moved games from cable to broadcast TV on NBC and ABC, lifting average viewership 16% to 1.78M.
Amazon's Prime Video, a new partner, sold $507.4M in ads and drew viewers a decade younger than traditional TV.
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Teams & Leagues
Former ownership group United World claims the current American buyers still owe $47M from their $135M purchase of the football club.
United World filed a court petition after the buyers allegedly transferred shares to a new holding company to avoid paying the remaining balance.
If the court grants this petition, the current owners will lose control of the team and face a severe 12-point league penalty.
A&P Sports Agency, a Texas startup representing student-athletes, negotiated over $30M in deals as direct school payments replaced basic marketing endorsements.
These new reps charge up to 20% in commissions, angering traditional NFL agents who are strictly capped at 3% by union rules.
Lawmakers recently proposed the Protect College Sports Act to cap agency fees at 5% and stop predatory practices in this unregulated market.
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Miscellaneous
The sports marketing firm created this new group to help brands and investors decide where to spend their money in sports.
Michael Brown, an executive with 30 years of marketing experience at major global brands, will lead the new division.
The team will initially help North American companies maximize their sports sponsorships before expanding to international markets.
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