Bill Chisholm, the founder of private equity firm Symphony Technology Group, has agreed a deal to buy the Boston Celtics for $6.1bn, according to ESPN.
The deal would be a record sum for a US sports franchise: a group led by Josh Harris and Mitchell Rales bought the NFL’s Washington Commanders for $6.05bn in 2023.
The Celtics’ current owners, the Grousbeck family, said last June that they intended to sell the team in 2024 or 2025. The sale would represent a huge return in investment for the Grousbecks and partner Steve Pagliuca: they led a group that bought the team for $360m in 2002.
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The Celtics are one of the NBA’s blue chip franchises. They have won a record 18 championships, including their win in last season’s NBA finals over the Dallas Mavericks. Their core of Jaylen Brown, Jayson Tatum and Kristaps Porziņģis are still in their prime and look set to compete for titles for the foreseeable future. This season has been a strong one for the Celtics and they sit second in the NBA Eastern Conference.
The NBA is also in rude financial health. Although audience figures have been slightly down this year, the league agreed a new $76bn 11-year broadcasting deal with ESPN, NBC and Amazon in 2024.
Last year, Forbes ranked the Celtics as the fourth-most valuable NBA team at $6bn. The Golden State Warriors were ranked No 1 with an estimated value of $8.8bn.
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