Avenue Capital Group Launches Dedicated Sports Fund

Avenue Sports Fund to Benefit from Avenue's Global Platform, Investment Professionals in Key Regions, and Leadership of CEO Marc Lasry

NEW YORK, Oct. 3, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Avenue Capital Group, a global investment firm, today announced the launch of a sports investment fund that will seek to provide capital solutions to a wide variety of sports teams, owners, and leagues, as well as invest in sports-related media and entertainment rights, real estate, and other adjacent businesses. While the Fund's anticipated geographic focus will be predominantly in North America and Europe, the Fund will also aim to provide growth capital within emerging sports leagues and teams in Africa, Asia, South America and Australia. The target size of the Fund was not disclosed.

The Fund will focus on the rapidly evolving sports landscape, providing a range of liquidity and capital solutions. It will seek to make preferred equity and minority, non-controlling equity investments in premier leagues and teams, and other sports-related businesses, and also provide growth capital for women's sports teams and leagues both in the U.S. and globally. The Fund will make investments in emerging sports and leagues to capitalize on the globalization of sports and related areas of potential rapid growth.

The Sports Fund's investments will draw on the capabilities and experience of Avenue Capital in making sophisticated investments in structured debt and equity, as well as its international expertise and deep sourcing relationships. Founded in 1995 by Marc Lasry and Sonia Gardner, Avenue Capital is an established credit investor with approximately $12.5 billion in assets under management. The firm's large team of investment professionals, operating from 10 offices across the U.S., Europe, Asia and Abu Dhabi, has significant structuring and investment experience in complex transactions across various jurisdictions, as well as extensive relationships with athletes, teams, leagues, industry executives and advisors, and franchise owners.

Mr. Lasry, Avenue Capital's Chairman, CEO and Co-Founder, is an established credit investor who has also demonstrated leadership in sports. Among other things, he is the former Co-Owner of the NBA's Milwaukee Bucks franchise. Mr. Lasry, and the ownership group of the Milwaukee Bucks, built a new arena that helped revitalize downtown Milwaukee, and turned an underperforming franchise into a championship organization. 

The Sports Fund also will benefit from the experience of a group of iconic athletes – including Stephen Curry, Lauren Holiday, Harry Kane, Candace Parker, Michael Strahan and Lindsey Vonn – that will assist Avenue. The athlete group members each offer unique insights regarding some of the most influential sports markets and have built relationships across the three critical groups that drive investment opportunities: athletes, owners and leagues. Together with Mr. Lasry's key relationships in the sports and entertainment industry, they will assist in fostering critical partnerships.

About Avenue Capital Group
Avenue Capital Group is a global investment firm focused primarily on making opportunistic credit and other special situations investments across the United States, Europe and Asia. Avenue, founded in 1995 by Marc Lasry and Sonia Gardner, draws on the skills and experience of over 60 investment professionals, and more than 180 employees worldwide operating from its headquarters in New York and offices in Dublin, London, Luxembourg, Hong Kong, New Delhi, Singapore, Sydney, Abu Dhabi and Silicon Valley. Avenue has assets under management of approximately $12.5 billion.

SOURCE Avenue Capital Group