Why Alt Managers Apollo (APO) & Others See Trillions in Sports Adjacencies

Apollo Global Management (APO) and Ares Management (ARES) are escalating their push into sports, sketching out dedicated vehicles to finance leagues, teams and the broader media ecosystem. Ares is courting individual investors with a semi-liquid media and entertainment fund that can deploy both debt and equity—a notable shift from the clubby world of sports finance. Apollo, meanwhile, is weighing a permanent capital vehicle aimed at longer-dated lending to franchises and leagues, with the flexibility to take equity when it makes strategic sense.

These moves ride a powerful tailwind: last year’s NFL rule change opening team ownership to private equity, alongside a surge of deal flow from clubs seeking liquidity without ceding control. Apollo has already inked loans to European football sides like Sporting Lisbon and Nottingham Forest, while Ares’ first dedicated sports fund closed in 2022 at $3.7 billion and has since bought into the Miami Dolphins and other franchises.

• Alternative asset managers see sports as a durable, underpenetrated cash-flow stream
• NFL’s private equity green light catalyzes new fund structures targeting minority stakes
• Retail distribution channels are emerging as managers chase fresh fee pools

• Ares is launching a semi-liquid fund for individuals to invest across sports media and teams
• Apollo is considering a permanent capital vehicle focused on lending to leagues and franchises
• Ares targets $100B from individual investors by 2028; potential $600M in fees from this initiative

• Expect more bespoke debt deals and minority equity stakes as valuations climb
• Competition from Arctos, CVC and hedge funds like Elliott and Oaktree will intensify pricing
• Ancillary “adjacent strategies” in media, data and venues could swell the addressable market to trillions

• Apollo and Ares are capitalizing on a generational opening: the NFL's decision to admit private equity has unlocked a vast, historically underpenetrated asset class characterized by strong cash flow, global fan bases, and scarce investable supply.
• Ares’ semi-liquid fund for individual investors democratizes access to sports—broadening its AUM, locking in recurring fees, and providing affluent clients a new alternative sleeve anchored by inflation-linked, non-correlated revenues.
• Apollo’s permanent capital vehicle aligns perfectly with the multi-decade investment horizons of sports franchises and leagues, allowing flexible lending and occasional equity positions that can capture upside without the pressure of traditional PE exit timetables.
• Both asset managers are leveraging proven models: Ares’ early success in its $3.7B sports fund (e.g., Miami Dolphins) and Apollo’s unique lending to European football prove the thesis that clubs are actively seeking liquidity solutions beyond outright control sales.
• Expanding distribution channels—especially retail and high-net-worth—could unlock tens of billions in new dry powder, with Ares targeting $100B from individuals by 2028, positioning sports as a new engine for fee generation and product innovation.
• The platform effect: once established, these vehicles could stretch into infrastructure (media rights, data, live-event tech), capturing value across the sports-entertainment ecosystem and creating cross-portfolio synergies as fan engagement and content monetization grow.

• Surging capital inflows could drive sports asset valuations above sustainable levels, squeezing yields and dampening long-term return prospects—especially with competition intensifying from Arctos, CVC, Oaktree, and hedge funds.
• Club and league cash flows, while attractive, are not immune to secular risks: regulatory changes, labor disputes, or shocks to global media rights could threaten what has historically been seen as “safe” or “scarce” cash flow streams.
• Retail-oriented products add complexity and business risk—market volatility or disappointing fund performance may test the stickiness of individual investors, especially with limited liquidity in the underlying sports assets.
• Multi-billion-dollar ambitions hinge on the successful scaling of new vehicles, partnerships with often conservative league owners, and management’s ability to maintain discipline as deal competition drives pricing ever higher.
• Adjacent strategies (media, data, venues) may prove harder to monetize than core team stakes, exposing sponsors to ecosystem risks and technology disruption as consumer tastes and viewing habits evolve.
• If the fundraising model underdelivers or infrastructure bets misfire, sports finance risks becoming an expensive experiment rather than a true alternative portfolio core—potentially stalling the broader alt manager growth story in this domain.

For Ares, the retail pivot broadens its investor base and locks in recurring fees; for Apollo, a permanent vehicle could match the ultra-long horizons of franchise economics. Both are betting that sports’ scarcity value, global media rights, and inflation-linked revenues can smooth cycles better than traditional PE plays.

If the model proves out, the next wave may extend beyond teams to the infrastructure that powers them—streaming platforms, ticketing tech, and live-event logistics—cementing sports as a core sleeve of alternative portfolios rather than a trophy-asset sideline.