The Los Angeles Lakers have been sold for a record-breaking $12.5 billion, shattering the previous mark set by the same team just over a year ago.
A group led by Joshua Kushner and Bob Iger has agreed to purchase the NBA team, marking the second time in 14 months that the Lakers have changed ownership. The deal follows Mark Walter's purchase of a controlling interest in the franchise for $10 billion in June 2025.
The sale of the Lakers has set the bar high for other sports franchises, with the team now holding the top three sale prices for NBA franchises all-time. The Boston Celtics sale to a group led by Bill Chisholm for $6.1 billion in 2025 is the second-highest sale price, while the Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury were purchased by Mat Ishbia for $4 billion in 2023.
The top three sale prices among North American sports teams are now held by the Los Angeles Lakers, with the Seattle Seahawks purchase by an ownership group led by the family of San Francisco 49ers limited partner Vinod Khosla for $9.612 billion being the only non-NBA team to break into the top three.
The sale of the Lakers and Celtics has pushed the Dallas Mavericks and Brooklyn Nets down to fourth and fifth place among NBA sale prices ever. The Dallas Mavericks were purchased by the Adelson and Dumont families for $3.5 billion, while the Brooklyn Nets were sold to Joseph Tsai for $3.3 billion.
In the NFL, the Seattle Seahawks purchase by Vinod Khosla's group is the third-highest sale price ever, with the Washington Commanders sale to Josh Harris' group for $6.05 billion being the fourth-highest.
The sale of the Los Angeles Lakers has also set a new benchmark for MLB teams, with the San Diego Padres being sold to private-equity billionaire José E. Feliciano and his wife, Kwanza Jones, for $3.9 billion.
The NHL's Tampa Bay Lightning sale to a group of investors led by Doug Ostrover and Marc Lipschultz of Blue Owl Capital for $1.8 billion is the highest sale price in the league's history, while the Pittsburgh Penguins were sold to the Hoffmann Family of Companies for $1.75 billion.
The sale of the Los Angeles Lakers has marked a significant milestone in the history of sports franchise sales, with the team now holding the top sale price in North America.
Source: Yahoo Sports