NBA and Olympic superstar Kevin Durant is the latest athlete who can add the title of European soccer team owner to his list of investments.
Durant has made a small investment in French champion team Paris Saint-Germain (PSG).
What Happened: Durant joins fellow NBA star LeBron James as an owner of a well-known European soccer team.
James is a partial owner of Liverpool, which competes in the English Premier League. Durant is taking an ownership stake in French team Paris Saint-Germain, which competes in the French Ligue 1.
Durant's investment was made through his Boardroom Sports Holdings via Arctos Partners, which is a strategic minority investment in the team, as reported by Boardroom.
"Earlier this month, Paris Saint-Germain President Nasser Al- Khelaïfi welcomed Durant and his long-time business partner, entrepreneur Rich Kleiman to the Paris Saint-Germain Capus to kick off the partnership with a visit to the Club's state-of-the-art training facility and education centre," Boardroom tweeted.
According to the post, Boardroom will work with PSG on a "multi-faced collaboration" for content and strategy.
The report also said Durant and Kleiman were particularly focused on the women's and youth academy teams for investment opportunities.
Durant invested a "few million dollars" according to a report from ESPN. Arctos Sports Partners bought a 12.5% stake in PSG in 2023 with the team valued at $4.6 billion.
Durant is also a part owner of Major League Soccer team Philadelphia Union.
Read Also: Comcast Stock To Win Gold Medal? 2024 Summer Olympics Viewership Up 82% From 2020 Olympics
Why It's Important: French soccer fans may not be in love with Durant at the current moment after his Team USA Men's Basketball Olympic team defeated the French National Team in the gold medal game.
The victory gave Durant a fourth gold medal, making him the first men's basketball player to achieve the feat. Durant also set several Team USA basketball records in the 2024 Olympics, including the all-time scoring record.
PSG won the French Ligue 1 in the 2023-2024 season for a third straight year and has won the league in eight of the last 10 seasons.
The team has also done well in the Champions League, which features the best teams from various European leagues. PSG was the Champions League runner-up in 2020 and has reached the round of 16 in 12 straight seasons with three semifinal appearances in the last five seasons.
PSG could face a tough task in the 2024-2025 season, which begins on Aug. 16, with star Kylian Mbappe exiting for Spanish team Real Madrid. Mbappe led the team with 27 goals last season with the next highest total by a PSG player being 11.
Mbappe is one of the famous PSG alumni, a list that includes well-known names like Lionel Messi, Ronaldinho, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Neymar and David Beckham.
While Durant's investment comes at a time when the team might not have the same star power as recent seasons, the ownership stake could also help boost PSG's brand awareness in the U.S.
The ESPN report said Durant's investment could help the team's marketing and sponsorship opportunities and comes with the 2025 Club World Cup and 2026 World Cup both set to be hosted in the U.S. in future years.
Read Next:
Photo: Cyrus Saatsaz via Wikimedia Commons
© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Comments
Trade confidently with insights and alerts from analyst ratings, free reports and breaking news that affects the stocks you care about.
