Bob Iger e Joshua Kushner compram os Los Angeles Lakers

Bob Iger, the former CEO of Disney, and Joshua Kushner, founder of private equity firm Thrive Capital, are purchasing the Los Angeles Lakers for $12.5 billion, according to Brazil Journal, which cites the Wall Street Journal. The price sets a new record for an NBA franchise sale.

The seller is Mark Walter, who finalized his own purchase of the Lakers just 14 months ago for $10 billion — itself a record at the time — from the Buss family, which had controlled the team since 1979 and retains a minority stake. Walter is also owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers, the current back-to-back MLB champion, and holds a stake in Chelsea of the English Premier League. Per Brazil Journal, Walter, 66, is the CEO of financial services firm Guggenheim Partners and has come under scrutiny from U.S. authorities in recent months over an investigation into roughly $16 billion in loans extended to companies connected to him or his conglomerate, TWG Global. The probe examines whether private credit arrangements involving his companies constitute fraud.

The Lakers officially stated the sale has not yet been finalized and requires approval from the NBA's board of governors, which comprises all franchise owners, per Brazil Journal. The deal also comes after the team lost LeBron James to the Philadelphia 76ers last month.

Neither Iger nor Kushner is new to sports ownership. Iger and his wife, Willow Bay, purchased a minority stake in Angel City FC, a women's soccer club in Los Angeles, in 2024. Iger also maintained a close relationship with the NBA during his tenure running Disney, whose ESPN subsidiary has broadcast the league for decades, giving him direct ties to NBA Commissioner Adam Silver. Kushner, meanwhile, holds a minority stake in the Miami Heat and previously had an interest in the Memphis Grizzlies.

Kushner's Thrive Capital also recently led a FIFA initiative under President Gianni Infantino to sell stakes in FIFA competitions — including the World Cup — to private investors for $4.2 billion. The plan drew strong opposition from federations in Europe, Asia, and North and Central America, who called for Infantino's removal; the proposal was ultimately shelved, per Brazil Journal.

The Lakers transaction is part of a broader wave of billionaire investment in major sports franchises. The Wall Street Journal, as cited by Brazil Journal, reported separately that Jeff Bezos is part of a group interested in acquiring Liverpool FC for approximately $8 billion, with that group also including Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin and led by Amit Bhatia, son-in-law of Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal. The Lakers deal still awaits the NBA governors' vote before it is official.