JPMorgan joins the sports investing league

Firm names co-leaders of new dedicated unit as valuations of sports teams soar.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. has set up a dedicated sports investment banking team, a sign that Wall Street banks are stepping up the battle for fees in an increasingly competitive corner of the mergers and acquisitions market.

The bank appointed Eric Menell and Gian Piero Sammartano to co-lead the new sports investment banking coverage group, according to an internal memo seen by Bloomberg News.

A spokesperson for JPMorgan confirmed the contents of the memo.

The move to create a dedicated team follows a decision by Goldman Sachs Group Inc. last year to create a dedicated sports unit under the leadership of Greg Carey and Dave Dase.

Sports teams have seen their valuations soar, driven in part by owners looking to cash in on rising valuations and a perception among investors, following the pandemic, that live sports remain a hit with viewers.

Investment banks helped steer about $25 billion of sports-related M&A in 2023, Bloomberg-compiled data show, making it the third consecutive year of record-breaking transaction values in the sector.

In the absence of dedicated sports advisory desks, US banks have previously been pulling from their teams of technology, media, and telecoms bankers to work on sporting mandates.

Larger rivals are going up against specialist sports advisers at firms including Raine Group, Moelis & Co., Rothschild & Co., and New York-based Inner Circle Sports. Bloomberg reported earlier this month that the financial advisory firm Consello Group has recruited the former Manchester United captain and sports broadcaster Gary Neville to help expand its footprint into sport and entertainment.

Lazard Inc. last month hired former LionTree partner Ben Braun in a bid to capture more fees from sports and entertainment deals. JPMorgan was one of the leading advisory banks in the sector last year, working on deals including British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe’s purchase of a roughly 25% stake in English football club Manchester United. It also advised World Wrestling Entertainment, the Italian football club Juventus FC and Renault Group, and has been involved in the financing of stadiums and arenas.