The Boston Celtics added another record to their historical résumé after reportedly being sold for $6.1 billion to a group led by Bill Chisholm, co-founder of Symphony Technology Group.
The sale price is a record for North American sports franchises and tops the $6.05 billion paid by a group led by Josh Harris for the NFL's Washington Commanders.
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As far as NBA team's go, before the Grousbeck family's sale to Chisholm Mat Ishbia's $4 billion purchase of the Phoenix Suns in 2023 was previously the highest in the league.
The Brooklyn Nets ($3.3 billion, Joseph Tsai), Houston Rockets ($2.2 billion, Tilman Fertitta) and Los Angeles Clippers ($2 billion, Steve Ballmer) round out the top five NBA sale prices.
Harris' group was the most expensive team purchase in the NFL at a little over $6 billion from Dan Snyder. There's a sizable difference between the Commanders' sale price and the team that comes in right after them, the Denver Broncos.
The Walton-Penner group shelled out $4.65 billion to purchase the Broncos in 2022, which was an NFL and American sports team record at the time. The team was put up for sale in Feb. 2022 after lengthy legal battles with previous owner Pat Bowlen's family following his 2019 death. Bowlen first purchased the franchise in 1984 for about $70 million.
Prior to the Broncos' sale, the Carolina Panthers' went for $2.275 billion to David Tepper. Previous owner Jerry Richardson put the team up for sale after a Sports Illustrated report detailed numerous allegations of sexually predatory behavior toward female employees and at least one financial settlement to a black scout that he called a racial slur.
Richardson bought the Panthers for $206 million in 1993.
Lifelong New York Mets fan and hedge fund manager Steve Cohen bought the "Amazin's" in 2020 for a then-American sports record of $2.4 billion. The change in ownership from the Wilpon family to Cohen was welcomed by the fan base, who have since seen the team's payroll skyrocket from $195 million in 2021 to well over $300 million in 2025, which is includes the monster contract handed to Juan Soto in free agency after luring the slugger over from the New York Yankees.
The Mets are one of five MLB teams that have sold for over $1 billion. The Los Angeles Dodgers were the first in 2012 after being purchased for $2 billion by Mark Walter and Guggenheim Baseball Management. At the time, it was the richest sale ever in professional sports.
Six years after the Dodgers sale, the Miami Marlins were bought by Bruce Sherman for $1.3 billion. John Sherman, no relation, spent $1 billion to acquire the Kansas City Royals two years later.
The most recent MLB team to be sold is the Baltimore Orioles, who went for $1.725 billion in 2024 to Baltimore native David Rubenstein.
The NHL's Tampa Bay Lightning have been a success under Jeff Vinik's ownership, making the Stanley Cup Final four times and winning two titles. The franchise's revitalization led to an NHL record sale price of $1.8 billion in Oct. 2024 to a group of investors led by Doug Ostrover and Marc Lipschultz of Blue Owl Capital.
It's not a traditional sale, however, as Vinik will retain full control for now and transfer control to Ostrover and Lipschultz in three years.
That $1.8 billion price tag will nearly double the $950 million that Michael Andlauer paid to purchase the Ottawa Senators in 2023.
While the Lightning go through their unique sale process, the Utah Hockey Club and owner Ryan Smith hold the official top sale price. Smith, who also owns the NBA's Utah Jazz, bought the Arizona Coyotes in April for $1.2 billion and moved the franchise to the "Beehive State" to begin play with the 2024-25 NHL season.
Expansion in the NHL has become a costly process over the years. The Nashville Predators, Atlanta Thrashers (now Winnipeg Jets), Columbus Blue Jackets and Minnesota Wild each paid $80 million to enter the league between 1998 and 2000. Sixteen years later, Bill Foley shelled out $500 million for a Las Vegas franchise and in 2018, the late David Bonderman and movie producer Jerry Bruckheimer paid $650 million for the Seattle Kraken franchise.
