From clubs to conglomerates: The rise of multi-club and cross-sport ownership

Owning a single club used to be the dream. Today, it’s the entry point. The global sports industry is in the midst of a structural transformation. What began as a wave of multi-club ownership (MCO) in football has evolved into something broader and more ambitious: sport as a multi-asset platform strategy. Savvy investors are no longer content with just one team in one geography. They’re building cross-sport, cross-continent portfolios that combine club ownership, media rights, fan ecosystems and commercial infrastructure – spanning football, motorsport, North American leagues and emerging formats like pickleball and esports.  This is more than just empire-building. It’s a strategic redefinition of how value is created in sport – one where owning the audience, the IP and the monetization engine matters more than simply lifting trophies. 

The evolution of multi-club ownership (MCO) 

Multi-club ownership refers to the control of multiple teams, often within the same sport – and most prominently in football. The model has exploded in scale and popularity: 

• More than 300 football clubs are now part of multi-club ownership structures worldwide. 

• Over 90% of cross-border football club acquisitions from 2018–2023 were driven by US-based investors. 

Why it works: 

• Talent development – A wider network enables structured player pathways and inter-club movement. 

• Brand expansion – Each club opens the door to a new market, fanbase or media footprint. 

• Operational efficiency – Shared back-office services and centralized data infrastructure improve margins and speed. 

• Risk diversification – Poor performance in one league or geography can be offset by another. 

City Football Group (CFG) leads the way with 13+ clubs across five continents and a centralized analytics platform. Red Bull’s network of RB Leipzig, RB Salzburg and New York Red Bulls mirrors this with a unified brand philosophy and vertical integration. 

Fixing a broken system: Why MCO is a survival strategy, not just a business model 

Professional sport, especially in Europe, operates in a paradox. Clubs are beloved institutions – but many are chronically unprofitable. In most industries, failing businesses are allowed to die. In sport, clubs are too emotionally valuable to fail. That sentiment masks deep financial fragility: 

• Over 55% of European clubs posted net losses in 2022, despite a post-COVID recovery. 

MCO applies a business framework to an emotionally driven sector which mirrors the private equity playbook: 

Acquire undervalued assets → Centralize operations → Professionalise leadership → Scale through synergy

This isn’t just a model for growth. It’s a roadmap for survival. 

From multi-club to multi-sport: The rise of cross-sport ecosystems 

If multi-club ownership was phase one, cross-sport consolidation is phase two. Today’s most sophisticated investors are assembling multi-sport ecosystems – blending European football with North American franchises, F1, combat sports and content platforms. It’s portfolio logic applied to fandom: scale assets across sports, geographies and demographics to maximize reach and revenue. 

Black Knight Football & Entertainment (Bill Foley) 

• AFC Bournemouth, Auckland FC, Lorient, Hibernian 

• Vegas Golden Knights (NHL), Vegas Knight Hawks (IFL) 

Foley’s play isn’t just about sports. It’s about blending North American franchise infrastructure with global football reach – while leveraging Vegas as a hub for media, events and content. In an interview with the Financial Times in 2023, Foley projected a $2B+ valuation across his holdings within five years. 

RedBird Capital 

• AC Milan, Toulouse FC, stake in Fenway Sports Group (Liverpool, Red Sox) 

• XFL (with Dwayne Johnson), SpringHill Entertainment (LeBron James) 

In a Sportico article from 2023, they predicted a value of $7.5bn in sports and media investments within the Redbird Capital portfolio. But why have they invested so heavily in this area?  

• Operational synergies across finance, HR, partnerships 

• Global market expansion via regional assets 

• Talent flow and brand amplification 

• Content and narrative control 

• Audience liquidity across platforms and formats 

Ambition without execution: What the 777 collapse teaches us

 Not every model works. The cautionary tale of 777 Partners shows how quickly things can fall apart without strategy, liquidity or trust. 

777’s portfolio: Genoa, Vasco da Gama, Standard Liège, Red Star FC – with a failed bid for Everton FC. 

What went wrong: 

• Missed payments and delayed wages  

• Fan protests and regulatory scrutiny 

• Minimal integration across clubs 

The lesson remains: buying clubs is easy but building a sustainable ecosystem is not. Ownership is just the starting point; orchestration is the advantage. At Elixirr, we help turn fragmented portfolios into high-performing ecosystems. 

Our capabilities include: 

1. Strategic asset identification – Find undervalued clubs, leagues and markets using data and insight.  

2. Post-acquisition transition – Day one readiness, cultural alignment and leadership integration.  

3. Shared services design – Centralize finance, legal, analytics, HR, performance. 

4. Brand architecture & governance – Preserve identity, enable synergy.  

5. Data & digital enablement – AI-powered tools for performance, revenue and fan engagement. 

A single club is no longer the goal. The next frontier is orchestrating ecosystems – portfolios of teams, leagues and media properties that scale together. Multi-club and cross-sport ownership represent the structural evolution of sport – where value lies in the control of story, scale and data. It takes more than ambition, it takes orchestration. 

In the next instalment, we’ll explore how private equity is transforming sport – and ask: What happens when financial logic leads, and the soul of the game follows?