Arctos Sports Partners is buying a minority stake in the Golden State Warriors in a deal that values the NBA team at roughly $5.5 billion, according to multiple people familiar with the sale.
The private equity firm is buying about five percent of the team, the people said. It is believed to be the first private equity investment in an NBA team since the league loosened its rules to allow institution investors.
Arctos was co-founded by private equity veteran Ian Charles and former MSG CEO David “Doc” O’Connor. The firm had about $1 billion in assets under management as of February, capital it planned to use to invest across sports franchises.
The Warriors are the second most valuable team in the NBA, according to Sportico’s rankings. The team, which opened a new San Francisco arena in 2019, is worth $5.21 billion, according to those numbers.
A representative for Arctos declined to comment. A representative for the Warriors declined to comment.
