Qatar to buy stake in Washington Wizards, Capitals: reports
The move follows the National Basketball Association allowing sovereign wealth funds to invest in teams and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund merging its LIV Golf league with the PGA Tour, demonstrating Gulf investors' interest in US sports.
Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund is buying a stake in three US sports teams, according to reports on Thursday, in a significant move that could signal further Gulf investment in American sports, and marks the first Qatari investment in a National Basketball Association (NBA) team.
The US sports news outlet Sportico reported that the Qatar Investment Authority is buying a “passive minority stake” in Monumental Sports & Entertainment. The company owns the Washington Wizards in NBA, the Washington Mystics in the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) and the Washington Capitals in the National Hockey League (NHL).
A spokesperson for Monumental Sports & Entertainment declined to issue a statement but described the Sportico report as “accurate” to Al-Monitor.
The Associated Press reported that the Qatar Investment Authority is buying a roughly 5% stake in Monumental Sports & Entertainment as part of a $4.05 billion deal.
