As Major League Baseball and the National Basketball Association move closer to adding new franchises, a former professional athlete turned wealth-management executive is cautioning that the price of admission may not be worth it for investors. Matt LaPorta, an executive-in-residence at Dynasty Financial Partners, a St. Petersburg, Florida-based RIA platform, told InvestmentNews that the economics of expansion teams are daunting, especially when factoring in stadium costs.
LaPorta, who played four seasons with the Cleveland Indians from 2009 to 2012, noted that MLB's expansion fee is expected to be around $2.5 billion, according to an ESPN report from September 2026. That figure is before any construction costs. "You've got a stadium that's $2 billion," he said. "So you're probably four, four and a half billion dollars into this thing before you play a game." In contrast, he pointed to the recent sale of the San Diego Padres for $3.9 billion to Clearlake Capital co-founder José E. Feliciano and his wife Kwanza Jones, which he said offers a more attractive entry point.
The NBA is reportedly seeking $12 billion to $13 billion for a Las Vegas expansion franchise, including a new arena. ESPN reported that three groups are finalists: Walmart heir Nancy Walton Laurie and Bill Laurie; Steve Apostolopoulos and Marc Lasry; and Bill Foley and Jerry Colangelo. LaPorta said the math for such a deal is challenging, but buying an existing team like the Padres "is actually not that crazy" because the asset is already generating revenue and growing.
LaPorta joined Dynasty in June 2026 to support its sports investing and athlete services. Dynasty's network includes more than 725 advisors with over $125 billion in assets. The firm favors co-investing alongside large private equity firms rather than investing directly in their funds, giving clients a stake in a specific team. "There has been deals so far in the sports ecosystem," LaPorta said. "It's a great talking point for advisors to talk to their clients."
Institutional capital is increasingly moving into established franchises. The New York Yankees announced a $2.6 billion financing agreement with Apollo Sports Capital in August 2026, giving the private equity firm a reported 16% stake. MLB owners voted this summer to raise the private equity ownership limit to 20%, up from 15%, according to Front Office Sports. The NBA, NHL, and MLS allow up to 20% ownership by a single PE firm, while the NFL caps it at 10%.
LaPorta explained that competitive protections and integrity concerns prevent private equity from controlling multiple teams, which limits the typical PE playbook. "You're only invested into one baseball, one football team because you can't be control in four or five teams," he said. Instead, he expects PE firms to increase their stakes in individual teams over time.
For advisors fielding client interest in sports investments, LaPorta emphasized the need for liquidity and patience. "Somebody that has the liquidity to write maybe a seven-figure check into a deal, and also be okay with not seeing a return on that for 7, 10, 15 years," he said. Dynasty aims to bring only deals that offer good value to its network partners and clients, not just because they involve a famous league.
MLB has identified six cities as leading candidates for expansion: Salt Lake City, Orlando, Nashville, Portland, Raleigh, and Montreal. LaPorta said it will be interesting to see where Commissioner Rob Manfred places the two new teams, but he believes expansion will be good for the league. However, for investors, the calculus may favor existing assets.
