#187 🏀 NBA Europe Update: 20+ Bidders, $1B+ Offers in Key Markets

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NBA Europe has gone into full-court press mode. Recent updates from the NBA revealed that final bids are now in from more than 20 ownership groups, with some markets reportedly attracting offers north of $1 billion per franchise ahead of the planned October 2027 launch. The league's financial model projects franchises breaking even by year three and more than $10 billion flowing through the European basketball ecosystem over its first decade. Big numbers. Now comes the hard part: converting the game plan into real points scored.

In other news, Novak Djokovic joined the growing list of star athletes becoming "strategic partners" as he teamed up with General Atlantic, the $90 billion AUM investment platform. And June's dealflow roundup came in at $207 million across 25 deals, with Cosm's $100 million Series C doing most of the heavy lifting. Full breakdown below.

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Sports Tech Monthly Investment Roundup

June 2026 kept up the year's habit of leaning on one giant round. Funding came in at $206.8M across 25 deals, down from May's $336.6M though busier by deal count, and nearly half the disclosed amount traced to a single company: Cosm's $100M Series C, led by Sony Pictures Entertainment. Along with two undisclosed acquisitions, putting total disclosed deal flow for the month at $206.8M.

Here's a quick summary:

• Geography: Funding by deal count was led by the USA, followed by France, the UK and India, with a long tail of smaller markets. By capital the US was well clear, carried by Cosm's $100M round out of Los Angeles. On the M&A side, the deals were split between India and the USA.

• Sectors: 'For Fans' dominated funding again, taking $160.1M (77.5%), with Cosm doing the heavy lifting. 'For Executives' edged past 'For Athletes' for second this month, $23.9M (11.6%) to $22.7M (11.0%). The two acquisitions landed one apiece in 'For Fans' and 'For Executives'.

• Top Deals: Apart from Cosm, on the M&A side, all three deals were undisclosed: FitnessForce Club Management Software (Mumbai) was acquired by Daxko (Birmingham, Alabama); Sports Card Investor (Atlanta) by CardsHQ (Atlanta); and ProCamps (Cincinnati) by FlexWork (Canton, Ohio).

Access every deal and see a more detailed breakdown on the Intelligence Hub.

📰 THE LATEST

Top News From The World Of Sports Tech & Biz

💸 NBA Launchpad expanded its pilot program to Asia with a dedicated track for regional startups in the program’s fifth year.

💸 Dubai Sports Council launched the Club Accelerators Programme as part of the Dubai Sports Sector Strategic Plan 2033 to strengthen club development across Dubai’s sports sector.

💸 Michigan State Athletics launched Spartan Ventures, a new commercial and revenue-generation initiative designed to support Michigan State Athletics in the evolving college sports landscape.

📺 Comcast planned to separate NBCUniversal and Sky from its connectivity business, splitting its media, film, theme park, and streaming operations from cable and broadband as competition intensified.

⚽ FIFA agreed a joint venture with European Football Clubs to operate the Club World Cup, likely expanding the 2029 edition and allowing more Premier League clubs to participate.

🥊 UFC Freedom 250 delivered 34 million total global viewers, becoming the most-watched UFC event ever in the U.S. while doubling its historic domestic audience internationally and generating 126 billion social views.

💸 Bob Iger and Joshua Kushner explored a bid for the NBA’s Las Vegas expansion team after hiring investment bankers and discussing plans for the potential franchise.

🏀 The NBA set the salary cap for the 2026-27 season at $164.961 million, with the salary cap and tax level taking effect on July 1.

🏀 The NBA laid off dozens of employees in a league office reorganization focused on expansion, local broadcasts, and new priorities including potential teams in the U.S. and Europe.

⚽ UEFA fined 14 clubs, including Juventus, Newcastle United, Aston Villa, and Chelsea, for breaching financial sustainability rules during the 2025-26 season.

💸 The NRL neared a $5 billion media rights agreement with Nine Entertainment and Foxtel, which would become the most expensive sports broadcast deal in Australian history and make the rugby league competition more valuable than the AFL for the first time.

🎾 Leading tennis players stood down from their Wimbledon prize money protest after two days following constructive meetings with tournament officials.

🎾 Andy and Jamie Murray launched The Set, a tennis-focused YouTube channel with long-term plans to expand into live events, podcasts, and sponsor-led opportunities.

💰 TwelveLabs, a video intelligence company, raised $100 million in Series B funding co-led by NEA and NAVER Ventures, with participation from Amazon, Radical Ventures, Korea Investment Partners, Index Ventures, Quadrille Capital, and Red Bull Ventures.

💰 Premier Lacrosse League closed a $100 million Series E financing round led by Ares and Joe Tsai, with additional investment from ESPN, Glen Powell, Rob Mac, Warren Zeiders, Tony Cavalero, and others, to expand media distribution, sponsorship, the Women’s Lacrosse League, and youth access ahead of lacrosse’s return at LA28.

💸 The NBA received finalized bids from more than 20 groups for NBA Europe, with some markets drawing offers above $1 billion for franchises in the planned European basketball league set to launch in October 2027.

💸 Novak Djokovic joined General Atlantic as a global strategic advisor, supporting the investment firm’s global platform through his experience across elite sport, wellness, longevity, and entrepreneurship.

💸 The Lewis family planned a $137 million (£100 million) cash injection into Tottenham Hotspur to help fund the Premier League club’s revamp after a difficult run of seasons.

💸 Gasol16 Ventures completed a $64 million (€55 million) investment in Liga F, acquiring between 35% and 49% of the clubs’ future commercial revenue rights to professionalize the league’s commercial model and accelerate international expansion despite Real Madrid dissent.

💸 The Premier Jumping League raised $50 million (£38 million) from the first sale of a team in the Frank McCourt-backed showjumping startup, with US investor and racing driver Jason McCarthy buying one of the 16 franchises ahead of the league’s launch next year.

💸 The Cleveland Cavaliers neared a deal to sell a 5% to 10% limited partner stake to Blue Owl at a combined $5.5 billion valuation for the NBA franchise and Cleveland’s incoming WNBA team.

💸 Lukas and Samantha Walton bought a minority stake in the Chicago Bulls and United Center, while the Reinsdorf family retained control of the NBA franchise.

🤝 DPG Media’s Videoland agreed to acquire Viaplay’s Dutch streaming and broadcasting business for $162 million (€142 million), gaining live sport for the first time through a rights portfolio including Premier League football, Bundesliga, Formula 1, and PDC darts.

🤝 FlexWork Sports acquired rival youth sports camp operator ProCamps in an eight-figure transaction, more than doubling its annual event offerings to around 1,000 while adding ProCamps’ G3 Marketing brand activation agency.

🤝 William Blair completed its acquisition of Inner Circle Sports for an undisclosed amount, adding the boutique investment bank focused on the global sports, media, and entertainment ecosystem to expand its advisory and capital markets platform.

🤝 City Football Group transferred all shares it held in Yokohama F. Marinos to Nissan Motor Co. for an undisclosed amount, while the Japanese club said it would continue its relationship with CFG as a partner club.

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