Sporting events have been around for thousands of years. For the vast majority of that time, they were largely spectator events, and, outside of gambling, only the organizers and the most talented contestants were able to make money from the games.
Today, it's possible to be an investor in a select number of publicly traded sports companies. Sports are more popular than ever, and new monetization opportunities are emerging and expanding rapidly. It could be a good time to take a swing at a sports-related investment.
List of stocks
Investing in sports stocks
By some estimates, the global sports industry takes in more than half a trillion dollars annually. The largest portion of that massive amount of entertainment spending is sporting goods retail, so stocks of companies that make and sell sports equipment and apparel are a great place to invest in sports.
Most sports leagues and teams are privately owned. For a more focused bet on specific sporting events, leagues, and teams, here are seven companies worth a look right now:
| Company name | Company ticker | Market cap | Industry |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manchester United Plc | NYSE:MANU | $3 billion | Entertainment |
| Rogers Communications | OTC:RCIA.F | $20 billion | Wireless Telecommunication Services |
| Madison Square Garden Sports | NYSE:MSGS | $5 billion | Entertainment |
| TKO Group Holdings | NYSE:TKO | $16 billion | Entertainment |
| Atlanta Braves Holdings | NASDAQ:BATR.A | $3 billion | Entertainment |
| Churchill Downs | NASDAQ:CHDN | $7 billion | Hotels, Restaurants and Leisure |
| Vail Resorts | NYSE:MTN | $6 billion | Hotels, Restaurants and Leisure |
1. Vail Resorts
Vail Resorts
Vail is a leader in mountain and winter sports. The company's namesake property in Colorado is a world-class destination for skiing, snowboarding, and other outdoor recreation, but Vail Resorts is actually a collection of 42 locations, mostly in the U.S. -- including the namesake Vail Resort in Colorado, Park City in Utah, and Northstar in California. It also owns Whistler Blackcomb in British Columbia and a handful of Australian resorts.
Besides selling tickets to its ski lifts, Vail also offers ski lessons, sells and rents winter sports equipment, operates as a resort, and makes money from dining and lodging. The COVID-19 pandemic deeply affected its business, but Vail has returned to posting consistent profitability and record revenue now that travel and recreation activity has bounced back.
2. Churchill Downs
2. Churchill Downs
Six years after the U.S. Supreme Court deemed sports betting legal, more than half of all states now allow for sporting event wagers. Churchill Downs stock is a unique way to play this movement in tandem with the world-famous event it organizes every year, combining a horse-racing venue with gaming and casino operations.
Although Churchill Downs is best known for the annual Kentucky Derby, it has several facilities with hotels, gaming, and gambling in Kentucky. It also owns TwinSpires, one of the largest online horse-racing wagering and sportsbook platforms. For a top bet on a premier sporting event, as well as on the growth of the burgeoning sports wagering industry, look no further than Churchill Downs.
3. TKO Group Holdings
3. TKO Group Holdings
TKO Group Holding was created through a merger of UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) and WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment) in 2023. The combination of these category-leading entertainment specialists created a giant in spectator sports, and it looks like the business has a long runway for continued growth.
UFC is the clear leader in mixed martial arts (MMA) events and broadcasts, and its popularity has continued to surge. Annual revenue for the MMA frontrunner's live events, media licensing, and promotional deals saw substantial growth in 2023, with live events sales looking particularly strong and climbing 34% year over year.
And while some sports fans may not take professional wrestling seriously, WWE fans -- and investors -- would take exception. The league has an army of global viewers, and the business has been on an impressive upswing. Media entertainment is the name of the game here, and WWE has a history of nurturing personalities who gain pop culture-level success (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is one example).
The company churns out weekly spectator events and has steadily increased the value of its content via pay-per-view and network licensing fees for its pro wrestling competitions. WWE has also entered the TV streaming era and made NBCUniversal's Peacock service -- owned by Comcast (CMCSA 1.21%) -- its home for the WWE Network.
4. Madison Square Garden Sports
4. Madison Square Garden Sports
MSG Sports is the product of a 2020 spinoff in which Madison Square Garden Entertainment (MSGE -0.66%) -- owner of the iconic venues Madison Square Garden and Radio City Music Hall in New York City, among other real estate investments -- became a separate company. It's a rare way to own a piece of a professional sports team since MSG Sports is the parent of the National Basketball Association's New York Knicks and the National Hockey League's New York Rangers.
Over the long term, this company's fortunes will ebb and flow with the success of its two primary franchises. The Knicks have returned to the NBA playoffs every year since the 2022-23 season, and the Rangers had a strong 2024 season that ended in the Eastern Conference finals. If both teams remain competitive, that will bode well for the performance of MSG Sports.
Additionally, MSG Sports owns esports teams that are part of Counter Logic Gaming, a league that competes in video games such as League of Legends, Fortnite, and Super Smash Bros. It also owns Knicks Gaming, an NBA 2K League esports team.
5. Manchester United
5. Manchester United
Manchester United stock is an even more focused individual professional sports team play than MSG Sports. It's the parent of the U.K.'s most decorated team in the Premier League (soccer, which is better known as football everywhere else in the world except the U.S.). Manchester United is a huge franchise, boasting some 1.1 billion fans and followers worldwide.
Since making its 2012 public debut in the U.S., Manchester United stock has struggled to gain traction. Shares are up just over 33% (when you include reinvested dividends) since the stock started trading following its IPO, but shares could be quite cheaply valued on the heels of that underperformance. It may not be a rags-to-riches Wrexham story, but you, too, can start your own football empire like Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney with some shares in Man United.
6. Rogers Communications
6. Rogers Communications
The next two companies on this list are less focused plays on sports events, venues, and teams, but they're nevertheless worth considering. Rogers Communications is one of Canada's largest mobile telecom and cable companies and is also a media company. Among its portfolio of assets are some sports team holdings.
Together with BCE (BCE 0.56%) (formerly Bell Canada), Rogers is a joint owner of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment -- the parent of the NHL's Toronto Maple Leafs, the NBA's Toronto Raptors, Major League Soccer's Toronto FC, and the Canadian Football League's Toronto Argonauts. Collectively, these assets make up a small fraction of Rogers' total financial results, but owning Rogers' stock is one way to own a small slice of the competitive sports world.
7. Atlanta Braves Holdings
7. Atlanta Braves Holdings
The Atlanta Braves baseball team is owned and operated by Braves Holdings LLC, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Braves Holdings. The stock began trading on the New York Stock Exchange in July 2023 after Liberty Media spun off its stake in the Braves as a publicly traded company.
In addition to the Braves MLB team, the Braves Holdings LLC also includes the Battery Atlanta business -- which is a mixed-use commercial complex that includes hotels, retail outlets, residential real estate, office buildings, and entertainment businesses. The Battery Atlanta is located surrounding the Truist Park stadium that hosts Atlanta Braves games.
Related investing topics
Long live sports investing
Investing directly in sports leagues and teams is one way to get a financial interest in this large and growing industry. The digitization of sports is opening up new options for monetizing athletic endeavors. Sporting goods, digital media, and esports are other promising ways to invest, and they could be a far more profitable endeavor over the long term. If a focused play on leagues and teams is what you're after, these seven sports stocks are a good place to get started.
FAQ
What sports teams can I buy stock in?
Most professional sports teams are privately held, which means that it is not possible to invest in them through public markets. On the other hand, there are a handful of sports teams that retail investors can buy stakes in.
- Buying stock in Atlanta Braves Holdings would give you a stake in the Atlanta Braves.
- Buying stock in Manchester United would give you a stake in the famous English soccer team of the same name.
- Celtic F.C (OTC:CLTFF), Juventus (OTC:JVTSF), and Borussia Dortmund (OTC: BORU.F) are other publicly traded soccer clubs that investors can buy stock in.
In addition to pure-play publicly traded sports stocks, investors can also build exposure to professional sports teams by investing in larger companies that either fully or partially own teams. For example, Madison Square Garden Sports Corp. owns the New York Knicks basketball team and the New York Rangers hockey team, and Comcast owns the Philadelphia Flyers hockey team.
Is there an NFL stock?
The NFL is a privately held company, and there is no publicly traded NFL stock. It appears unlikely that there will be publicly traded NFL stock any time soon. For those seeking investment exposure to NFL broadcasts, investing in leading sports content carriers would be the best way to build exposure to the professional football league.
What do professional athletes invest in?
Professional athletes may invest in a wide range of different categories depending on their individual interests, goals, and outlooks. These investments include publicly traded stocks, private businesses, real estate, bonds, and cryptocurrencies.
What is the most profitable sports team in the world?
The Dallas Cowboys are broadly considered to be the most profitable sports team in the world. In addition to revenue shared with teams through the NFL, the Cowboys generated almost $800 million in revenue from local ticket sales, food and drink sales at AT&T Stadium, merchandise, and other sources in 2023. Of the roughly $1.2 billion in total sales recorded by the Dallas Cowboys that year, the business is estimated to have posted an operating income of $567 million.
