The Washington Commanders will be in the hands of Apollo Global founder Josh Harris after the $6 billion deal is finalized. It’s quite the return on investment for the team’s controversial owner Dan Snyder, who bought the team for $800 million in 1999.
At the time, it was a record price for a U.S. sports franchise. Buying a sports team tends to be a good bet with multiplying values. Here are the major men’s teams with the fastest growing values in this week’s Five For Friday.
5: New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are by far the most valuable MLB franchise. Legends like Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris and Derek Jeter have all donned the iconic pinstripes. The team’s value surged to $7.1 billion in 2023, a 78% increase over the last five years.
Television revenue from the YES Network, which the organization partially owns, has been great for the bottom line. Aaron Judge breaking the American League home run record with 62 and a deep playoff run in 2022 keeps Yankee Stadium full and helps pay for that star-studded roster.
4: Las Vegas Raiders
NFL teams are the most expensive in all of sports. The Las Vegas Raiders have gone from a $2.4 billion valuation to $5.1 billion in less than five years, a 113% increase.
The Raiders were the second-least valuable team in 2015. But a move to Las Vegas and a state-of-the-art stadium landed the club a spot in the top 10. The franchise hopes for continued growth after they led the league in ticket sales for the 2021 season at $119 million. The Commanders, meanwhile, were second to last in sales that season.
3: Golden State Warriors
The Dallas Cowboys is proof a team doesn’t need a recent championship track record to be the most valuable franchise in a sport. But winning is how the Golden State Warriors soared to the top of the NBA.
The Dubs are worth $7 billion, according to Forbes, but others have them closer to $7.5 billion. Even the more conservative estimate is more than double the value from five years ago, up 126%. The Warriors have won four titles since 2015 and the brand new Chase Center has upped its value. This is how they can afford to continue employing the highest paid player in the league, Steph Curry.
2: Edmonton Oilers
The NHL’s Edmonton Oilers are the least valuable team on this list at $1.3 billion, but its value has grown 145% over the last half decade. Edmonton is where “The Great One” Wayne Gretzky started his NHL career. The team recently launched Oilers+, a new streaming service that offers fans pretty much everything but the actual game.
Canadian billionaire Daryl Katz bought the team 15 years ago for roughly $200 million. That’s a significant return on investment.
1: Paris Saint-Germain
Paris Saint-Germain has the fastest growing value in all of sports, spiking 280% over the last five years. The club has turned its fortunes around by paying some of the highest salaries in soccer. There’s even a Five For Friday on it.
Superstars like Kylian Mbappe, Lionel Messi and Neymar Jr. helped the squad finish first or second in their league for the last decade. Now there are questions about what will happen with two of its biggest stars looking to make a move. PSG will likely come up with the cash to bring in more since it’s owned by Qatar and the state wealth fund is worth nearly half a trillion dollars.