A few days ago, I shared that the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers are being sold for the second time in a year. This time, they’re being sold for $12.5 billion, up from $10 billion last year. There are lots of reasons for that transaction that have come to light since the news broke (see here). But it feels like the pace of deals to buy controlling or minority stakes in professional sports teams has accelerated rapidly in the last few years.

That feeling was reinforced today when it was reported that the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons are selling 10% of the team at a valuation of $10.6 billion to Arctos Partners, a private equity firm owned by KKR (see here). It’s a minority stake, so Arthur Blank will still have the majority stake and control of the team. It’s not a bad return considering he bought the entire team in 2002 for ~$545 million. But the trend of ownership stakes in sports teams changing hands continues.

As ownership moves from individuals and families to private equity, I wonder if that will have an impact on how teams are run or if more financial data about teams will become public. I’m curious to see how this plays out.