By Lisa Richwine and Amy Tennery
LOS ANGELES/NEW YORK, Aug 12 (Reuters) – Venture capitalist Joshua Kushner and former Disney CEO Bob Iger are set to purchase the Los Angeles Lakers, with the deal valued at a record $12.5 billion, according to sources familiar with the matter on Wednesday.
Billionaire Mark Walter purchased a majority stake in the NBA team last year in a deal that valued the club at $10 billion, with the deal only having been approved by the board of governors in October.
Walter’s financial empire faces a federal probe, according to reports last month, examining links between investments held by his insurers and affiliates. Walter is also the owner of Major League Baseball’s Los Angeles Dodgers.
“As lifelong NBA fans, we are deeply honored for the opportunity to become stewards of the Los Angeles Lakers, one of the most iconic sports franchises in the world,” Iger and Kushner said in a statement.
“We have immense respect for the leadership and vision of Jerry and Jeanie Buss. Our long-term commitment is to build on that foundation, compete at the highest level, and serve this extraordinary team, its fans, and the city of Los Angeles.”
The two businessmen had previously been tied to a potential expansion NBA team in Las Vegas but seemingly ended that campaign with Wednesday’s news, which stunned fans and industry experts.
The announcement comes weeks after Kushner became a key figure in a controversial private equity proposal tied to FIFA, which last month said it would set up a subsidiary to run the World Cup.
FIFA had planned to sell minority stakes at an equity valuation of $20 billion, with the Kushner-founded Thrive Eternal, a new investment strategy launched by venture capital firm Thrive Capital, set to lead the investor group.
The plan triggered a backlash across global soccer and threatened to become a test of FIFA President Gianni Infantino’s leadership before he abandoned it days later. Kushner’s brother, Jared, is U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law.
Iger, the former CEO of the Walt Disney Company, previously took a majority stake in NWSL side Angel City FC.
(Reporting by Amy Tennery in New York; Editing by Alison Williams, Christian Radnedge and Pritha Sarkar)
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