NBA reviewing Qatari fund bid for minority stake in Washington Wizards

Capital One Arena, home to the Washington Capitals NHL hockey team and Washington Wizards NBA basketball team. AP Photo

An NBA spokesman has confirmed that Qatar's sovereign wealth fund is seeking to acquire a stake in the group that owns the NBA's Washington Wizards.

The proposed deal would see the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) buy a minority stake in Monumental Sports & Entertainment, the group led by Ted Leonsis that owns the Wizards, the WNBA's Mystics and the NHL's Washington Capitals and would represent a groundbreaking move by a sovereign wealth fund into US pro team sports.

"The NBA Board is currently reviewing a potential investment by QIA in Monumental Sports & Entertainment, the parent company of the Washington Wizards, among other sports properties," NBA spokesman Mike Bass said in a statement.

The Washington Post, citing a person familiar with the terms, reported that the state-owned Qatari fund was seeking to acquire a 5 per cent stake in Monumental Sports & Entertainment.

Bass noted that the NBA had adjusted its rules in November 2022 to "permit passive, non-controlling, minority investments in NBA teams by institutional investors, including university endowments, foreign and domestic pension funds, and sovereign wealth funds, subject to a set of policy guidelines adopted at that time.

"All such investments require league review, NBA Board approval and compliance with the policy," he added.

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