Former Milwaukee Bucks co-owner Marc Lasry is in negotiations to buy a controlling stake in the North Carolina Courage, Sportico reported today. A person with knowledge of the talks confirmed to The Athletic that Lasry is negotiating for majority ownership with current Courage owner Steve Malik. Per Sportico, Lasry is reportedly offering $108 million for a 60% stake.
These negotiations come one year after the Courage went through a funding round last August that raised $15 million, with Sportico valuing the team at $66 million. Malik brought in five new investors last September to join a group that includes tennis players Naomi Osaka and Ons Jabeur.
Lasry previously attempted to bid on a controlling interest in Angel City FC. He sold his 25% stake in the Bucks to Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam last April in a deal valued at $3.5 billion and has been raising money for a dedicated sports investment fund as part of his global investment firm, Avenue Capital Group. Avenue Sports Fund includes input from several athletes, including former U.S. women’s national team midfielder Lauren Holiday.
The Courage has historically been a powerhouse in NWSL on the field, winning the national championship in 2018 and 2019. They also endured an extremely low point off the field after the 2021 release of the Yates Report, which contained allegations of sexual coercion and verbal abuse against then-head coach Paul Riley. Malik was also named in the report, which presented evidence that — while doing his due diligence before hiring Riley — Malik had been told by former Portland Thorns owner Merritt Paulson of allegations of misconduct against Riley while he was head coach of the Thorns.
The Courage has also struggled to grow its attendance year over year, averaging 4,389 fans in 2017 and 5,384 fans in 2023. Their highest average attendance was 5,875 in 2019. The current overall average attendance in NWSL is 11,477 while the Courage’s 2024 average attendance is 5,714, the lowest in the league. The team currently plays at WakeMed Soccer Park, a 10,000-seat natural grass municipal stadium operated by the town of Cary. NWSL commissioner Jessica Berman has stated several times that, going forward, one of the factors the league weighs heavily when it comes to approving ownership is their ability to control their training facilities and stadiums whenever possible. This year’s NWSL championship will be hosted at the Kansas City Current’s newly-built CPKC Stadium, which seats 11,500 but could be expanded to 20,500 in the future.
The Courage did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
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(Top photo: Jonathan Hui, Mary Langenfeld / Imagn Images)
