Another American sports franchise has been sold for yet another record price.
On Wednesday morning, news broke that Josh Kushner and Bob Iger had agreed to purchase majority ownership of the Los Angeles Lakers from Mark Walter for a staggering $12 billion, sources told ESPN's Ramona Shelburne. It's the largest sale of a professional sports franchise in the world. It's also the second time in recent memory the Lakers have broken that record -- Walter purchased them from the Buss family in June 2025 for $10 billion.
This deal adds to a recent surge in franchise sale prices. Here's a list of some of the most expensive franchise purchases in U.S. sports:
Los Angeles Lakers
Sale price: $12 billion
A little more than a year after their previous sale, the Lakers changed hands again, this time going from Mark Walter to Josh Kushner and Bob Iger. Kushner and Iger had made overtures toward an NBA franchise in Las Vegas, but made an unexpected pivot to buy the team from Walter for $2 billion more than he paid in 2025.
Los Angeles Lakers
Sale price: $10 billion
Mark Walter, who previously owned a minority stake in the Lakers and has interests in the Los Angeles Dodgers, the WNBA's Los Angeles Sparks, the Billie Jean Cup, the Cadillac Formula 1 team and the Professional Women's Hockey League officially bought the team for a record $10 billion in October 2025. The Buss family, who previously owned the team for 46 years, retained a minority stake in the franchise.
Boston Celtics
Sale price: $6.1 billion
Bill Chisholm, managing partner at Symphony Technology Group agreed to purchase the Boston Celtics from the Grousbeck family for $6.1 billion in March 2025. It marked the largest sale of an American sports franchise at the time, surpassing the mark of $6.05 billion set by the Washington Commanders in 2023. The deal came within a year of the Celtics winning the 2024 championship.
Washington Commanders
Sale price: $6.05 billion
This sale came after a period of turmoil and multiple investigations into former owner Dan Snyder, who was fined $60 million after attorney Mary Jo White released her findings. The new owners were a group led by Josh Harris, who -- along with David Blitzer as part of the Harris-Blitzer Sports Entertainment group -- also owns the Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils. The team finished the 2023 season with a 4-13 record but went 12-5 in 2024 after drafting quarterback Jayden Daniels.
Denver Broncos
Sale price: $4.65 billion
The Walton-Penner group's $4.65 billion purchase of the Broncos in 2022 was the record sale price for an NFL team by more than $2 billion before the sale of the Commanders. Previously, former Carolina Panthers owner Jerry Richardson had sold his franchise to billionaire David Tepper for $2.275 billion in 2018.
Rob Walton's net worth is $57.9 billion, according to Forbes. His cousin and another Walmart heir, Ann Walton, is the wife of Los Angeles Rams owner Stan Kroenke. Kroenke also owns three Colorado sports teams: the NBA's Denver Nuggets, NHL's Colorado Avalanche and MLS' Colorado Rapids.
Phoenix Suns and Mercury
Sale price: $4 billion
The combined sale, which received league approval in February, set a high-water mark for NBA franchises at the time by more than $1.5 billion compared to what the Brooklyn Nets sold for in 2019. New owner Matt Ishbia was a walk-on for Michigan State and part of the Spartans' 2000 national championship team.
Dallas Mavericks
Sale price: $3.5 billion
One of the most visible owners in the league, Mark Cuban served as the majority owner of the Mavericks since 2000 before selling to the Adelson and Dumont families of the Las Vegas Sands casino in 2023.
Charlotte Hornets
Sale price: $3 billion
After a 13-year run as owner, NBA legend Michael Jordan agreed to sell his majority stake in the Hornets in the summer of 2023. The buyers were a group led by Gabe Plotkin and Rick Schnall, the former having previously been a minority owner of Charlotte.
New York Mets
Sale price: $2.4 billion
The Mets had the honor of having the most expensive team sale in American sports until the Broncos came along. In 2020, hedge fund manager Steve Cohen purchased the Mets for $2.4 billion. The Los Angeles Dodgers previously held the mark for the most expensive MLB team sale when they sold for $2 billion in 2012.
Cohen is the founder of Point 72 Asset Management and now-defunct SAC Capital Advisors.
Brooklyn Nets
Sale price: $2.35 billion
In 2019, Alibaba co-founder Joe Tsai bought the Nets for $2.35 billion from Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov. Tsai already had secured 49% ownership from Prokhorov in 2018 but accelerated the timeline for full ownership. Along with the then-record purchase for Brooklyn, Tsai also purchased Barclays Center, the Nets' home arena, in a separate transaction for roughly $1 billion.
Brooklyn isn't the only New York-based sports team Tsai owns. He bought the WNBA's New York Liberty franchise in January 2019.
Carolina Panthers
Sale price: $2.275 billion
The Panthers became available for sale following the 2017 NFL season after sexual harassment and workplace misconduct accusations were made against Richardson. Tepper, whose net worth is $16.7 billion according to Forbes, bought the team for $2.275 billion. Before taking over Carolina, Tepper had a 5% ownership stake in the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The Appaloosa founder also spent $325 million in 2019 to bring MLS its 30th team, Charlotte FC.
Houston Rockets
Sale price: $2.2 billion
Former Rockets owner Leslie Alexander sold the team to Texas native and billionaire Tilman Fertitta for $2.2 billion in 2019. Fertitta grew up in Galveston, Texas, and was a regular attendee at Houston's games before buying the franchise.
According to his website, he is the sole owner of Fertitta Entertainment, which owns the restaurant giant Landry's, the Golden Nugget Casinos and Hotels and the Rockets. Fertitta also has his own TV show on CNBC called "Million Dollar Buyer."