Home / News / Ted Leonsis lands on Forbes cover for creating one of the most valuable sports empires in the world

Ted Leonsis lands on Forbes cover for creating one of the most valuable sports empires in the world

By Chris Cerullo

 1 Comment

January 25, 2023 5:05 pm

Washington Capitals owner Ted Leonsis landed on the cover of Forbes Daily highlighting his huge year in 2022.

Forbes published top 25 list of the most valuable sports empires in the world.

Leonsis made the list ranked number 20 through the Washington, DC sports powerhouse that is Monumental Sports & Entertainment. Ted is the founder, principal partner, and CEO of MSE which Forbes values at an estimated $4.51 billion.

MSE’s listed properties include the Capitals, Washington Wizards, NBC Sports Washington, Monumental Sports Network, Washington Mystics, and stakes in esports and gaming enabler aXiomatic.

Forbes credits MSE and Ted’s presence on the list due to their local-market domination strategy. That includes the fact that they also own Capital One Arena where two of their franchises play all of their home games and their recent acquisition of TV network NBC Sports Washington which gives them full power over the distribution of their teams’ content.

Leonsis could add further to his empire if he is successful in his rumored desire to purchase MLB’s Washington Nationals. According to sources from The Athletic, Leonsis’ joint bid with fellow billionaire David Rubenstein had them as front runners to purchase the team as recently as this past October.

There have also been reports that Leonsis would consider buying the Baltimore Orioles if that MLB franchise ever comes up for sale as well.

If Ted were to be eventually successful in his pursuit of one of the Mid-Atlantic region’s baseball teams, he could create an unprecedented local sports network.

As things currently stand, Leonsis is one of just 10 owners to own two franchises in the four major North American sports leagues. A further purchase in MLB would make his NBC Sports Washington property all the more vital as MSE would have a unique opportunity to air important DC sports games year-round on the same network.

At the top of Forbes’ rankings is Liberty Media ($20.8 billion), headed up by billionaire John Malone. Their main assets include the Atlanta Braves and Formula 1 racing as well as stakes in the Drone Racing League, Kroenke Arena Co., Meyer Shank Racing, and Overtime Sports.

The top five are rounded out by Kroenke Sports & Entertainment ($12.75 billion), Jerry Jones ($11.32 billion), Fenway Sports Group ($10.4 billion), and Madison Square Garden Sports ($9.17 billion).

Safe to say, Ted could lead MSE even higher on this list in the near future.

Headline photo: Elizabeth Kong/RMNB

, ,