KKR Founders Buy Into Spanish Soccer

The €1.25B valuation includes debt for a new 70K-seat stadium, and the deal adds €100M of fresh cash to the club.

Buyer Pitchwise Holdings includes family offices of George Roberts and Henry Kravis, co-founders of private equity firm KKR, plus Denver Broncos owner Penner Sports Group.

Valencia, owned by Singaporean billionaire Peter Lim, won Spain's league in 2004 but sits 19th of 20 teams and has sought investors since 2025.

Investment firms struggle to find independent sports businesses making over $10M in profit, which drives up purchase prices for the few available targets.

To avoid overpaying, buyers are acquiring smaller companies with $3M to $5M in profit or international brands to build into major sports platforms.

Investors are also funding non-sports businesses, like US entertainment firm The Gersh Agency, to help them acquire and launch new specialized sports divisions.

MSG apologized for using rings as bait in a fake scam email testing whether staff protect company data, but defended the test itself.

Sports outlet The Athletic reported Knicks assistant coaches and staff got no championship rings at the season opener, and MSG initially declined to comment.

MSG says players were always meant to get rings first and the rest of the 275-plus rings will reach staff in 4-6 weeks.

Race organiser Amaury Sport Organisation and Saudi Arabia's motorsport body jointly moved the January race and will name a new host within days.

The move follows attacks by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi rebels, which have already disrupted Saudi golf, tennis, cycling and rally events.

Saudi Arabia has hosted the off-road race since 2020, and organisers call the move a one-off, with the 50th edition returning there in 2028.

Two-time major champion Dustin Johnson leads more than 10 players claiming over $100M in unpaid contracts from the bankrupt golf league.

The PIF, Saudi Arabia's state investment fund that bankrolled LIV until April, reportedly offered just 2 cents per dollar owed.

None are expected to sign LIV 2.0's current terms by Sunday's deadline, adding pressure on the relaunch backed by investment firm BC Partners Credit.

The Golden State Valkyries beat the Dream 67-62 Saturday, tying the best-of-seven series 2-2 and guaranteeing a Game 6 in Atlanta Thursday.

The NBA's Atlanta Hawks play an hour earlier at State Farm Arena, a 17K-seat venue nearly 5x the size of the Dream's usual home.

Unlike the Valkyries, whose owner also owns their arena, the Dream share no owners with the Hawks, leaving any schedule change to the NBA.

The Pittsburgh Steelers reached Paris 48 hours before kickoff, four days after opponent New Orleans, and quarterback Aaron Rodgers wished they had come earlier.

Since 2022, opponents in 27 NFL games abroad arrived on different days 16 times; the first to land won nine, barely better than chance.

The Los Angeles Rams landed 24 hours before their season opener in Australia, a week after the San Francisco 49ers, and lost by 20.