In a bid to keep the Connecticut Sun, a Women’s National Basketball Association team, in the state, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont is preparing a bid for the state’s pension fund to acquire a stake in the team.
In a September 10 press conference announcing the Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust Funds’ fiscal year 2025 results, Lamont said he would support the state’s pension investing in the team, which is currently for sale by its owner Mohegan Sun.
“We have a very competitive bid for out there for the Connecticut Sun; I think they belong in Connecticut, which is the birthplace of women’s basketball,” Lamont said. While Lamont did not share specific details about how much the state could invest in the team, he said it has made two proposals: one in which it would buy the team, and one in which it would acquire a stake. “It depends on where the negotiations go, but we’re still in the game.”
Lamont said the state has a private investor with experience in investing in sports, specifically NBA teams, as a junior partner in its bid to acquire the Sun.
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“In any deal that involved the pension fund, my priority would be making sure that we’re getting the best risk-adjusted returns for pensioners,” Connecticut Treasurer Erick Russell, who oversees the management of the CRPTF, said in the press conference.
In July, a Boston-based group including Boston Celtics owner Steve Pagliuca proposed the $325 million acquisition of the team, which could have relocated it from Uncasville, Connecticut, to Boston in 2027, although WNBA executives expressed disapproval with certain aspects of the deal. The team received a separate bid from former Milwaukee Bucks co-owner Marc Lasry for the same price.
Team Ownership History
The Mohegan Tribe, owners of Mohegan Sun, acquired the Orlando Miracle in 2003 for $10 million and relocated the team to Connecticut, rebranding it as the Connecticut Sun. A spokesperson for Mohegan Sun did not respond to requests for comment.
“Ask Mohegan Sun whether it was a good investment they made 20 years ago,” Lamont said. “I think it’s an eight-to-one [return]. We wouldn’t have any pension liability if we had that type of return.”
The proposed sale has drawn the ire of Connecticut politicians, with U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal, D-Connecticut, warning in a letter that the WNBA could be violating federal antitrust laws over reportedly blocking proposals that would keep the team in Connecticut. In a September 11 press conference, Connecticut Attorney General William Tong requested documents from the WNBA regarding the sale of the Sun.
“Connecticut will fight hard for our players, coaches and fans, and we will take all steps necessary to keep the Team in Connecticut where it belongs,” Tong said in a statement.
The Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust Funds, overseen by the office of the treasurer, manages $62.7 billion in assets under management, including $28.66 billion in the Teachers’ Retirement Fund, $25.8 billion in the State Employees’ Retirement Fund and $3.8 billion in the Municipal Employees Retirement Fund. The system reported a 10.1% return for fiscal 2025 on Wednesday.
Trend Toward Sports
Sports have become a hot investment. Valuations of sports teams are soaring, and new rules passed by several sports leagues have expanded opportunity to a wider range of asset managers and institutional investors from its previous pool of high-net-worth individuals and families.
Alternative investment managers are increasingly launching sports-focused funds. Apollo Global Management is reportedly planning a $5 billion sports fund, and European private equity firm CVC is launching a $14 billion sports investing platform.
“Investment in women’s sports has been a very hot area,” Russell said. “This has been a big topic all around the country. We have seen other public pension plans that have invested in the space, particularly in women’s basketball.”
The Maryland State Retirement and Pension System has committed $75 million to each of three separate funds managed by sports-focused private equity firm Arctos Partners. The Arizona Public Safety Personnel Retirement System is the only U.S. public pension fund that owns a direct stake in a sports team, taking a majority stake in English football club Ipswich Town F.C., back in 2021.
Many sports leagues have restrictions on what types of investors can invest in their teams. In August 2024, the NFL began to allow private equity investment in its league, although only a handful of firms were given permission by the league to make such investments. The NBA previously had restrictions on the involvement of sovereign wealth funds and quasi-government authorities. Lamont said he did not anticipate the WNBA taking issue with the pension fund’s potential stake in the Sun.
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Tags: Connecticut Retirement Plans and Trust Funds, sports
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