Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund wants to buy shares in a company that owns NBA, WNBA and NHL franchises. The basketball league announced an examination.
The sovereign wealth fund “Qatar Investment Authority” (QIA) is aiming for a stake in the group via its subsidiary Qatar Sports Investments (QSi), which includes the basketball players from the Washington Wizards, the Washington Mystics from the women’s league WNBA and the ice hockey NHL club Washington Capitals belong. This was confirmed by a spokesman for the NBA on Thursday (06/22/2023, local time).
A stake would be a game-changer in US professional team sports. The Washington Post, citing an unnamed source, reported that the Qatari sovereign wealth fund wants to acquire a five percent stake in Monumental Sports & Entertainment, the parent company of the Washington professional clubs mentioned. The volume of the deal is said to be around four billion euros.
“Not involved in decision-making”
“All such investments require league review, NBA Board approval and policy compliance,” said NBA spokesman Mike Bass. The official noted that the NBA amended its rules in November 2022 to allow “passive, non-controlling, minority investments in NBA teams by institutional investors, including university endowments, foreign and domestic pension funds, and sovereign wealth funds, subject to a number of regulations.” .
In accordance with (NBA) policy, if approved, QIA would have “a passive minority interest in the team and would not be involved in its operation or decision-making,” Bass said.
PSG owner
Qatar Sports Investments already owns French soccer champions Paris Saint-Germain. The fund is also apparently considering entering the English Premier League. The takeover of Manchester United is said to be imminent. QSi also holds 21.67 percent of the shares in the Portuguese club Sporting Braga.
2023-06-23 06:57:28
#Qatar #pushing #sport
