It has been a busy winter for Knighthead Capital Management, and after ploughing a not insignificant proportion of their investment portfolio into the Birmingham Phoenix franchise in cricket’s Hundred competition, they’re now at it again. And this time it’s one of the Netball Super League’s newest franchises that’s set to benefit.
Last week, the US Asset Management Firm, which includes former NFL great Tom Brady among its investors, bought a controlling stake in the Birmingham Panthers. In doing so, Birmingham City - who look certain to be promoted from League One as champions in the coming weeks - have followed Nottingham Forest into a sport which is currently undergoing a significant transformation in the UK.
Over three million currently play the sport, while the introduction of the Netball Super League , dubbed NSL 2.0 which began last month, has only served to quicken the sport’s journey towards professionalisation.
Rob says it’s little surprise that owners on the lookout for value are taking the plunge and ploughing money into a sport on an upward trajectory.
“The obvious multi-club owners out there, the likes of City Football Group and also Red Bull, go out and acquire what are essentially feeder clubs. Now what we’re seeing is the growth of a multi-sport model emerging. Nottingham Forest, of course, do that with their Nottingham Forest netball franchise and now we’re seeing Knighthead Capital Management, the owners of Birmingham City, buying into the Birmingham Panthers.
“It’s really interesting how they use top tier talent to work across those multi-sport groups, develop the talent in their respective sports and obviously grow the brand. I think Knightshead have got a plan where they’re going to generate something like £3bn in the east side of Birmingham in this sporting quarter that they’re looking to develop.
“I think it (is being driven) by value. We’ve seen a lot of money pour into football over the last few years. But I don’t think there’s really much value left in the football industry. You certainly can’t pick up assets relatively inexpensively. We’ve obviously done a Substack on investment in the Hundred and the investment into there, and I think a lot of that is down to the fact that it’s cheaper to buy stakes in the Hundred than it is to buy a professional football club.
“I think netball, rugby union and also, potentially, rugby league will all be the recipients of the next wave of capital investment simply because the growth potential is huge.”
Certainly, attracting investors such as Knighthead is a boon for a sport which came in for considerable criticism when the initial plans for the NSL were outlined.
“I’m really impressed with the Netball Super League’s strategic plan and strategic vision,” says Rob. “It came in for a lot of flak when it was announced last year because they went down from 10 teams to eight but that was absolutely the right decision.
“You’ve got to drive new audiences, you’ve got to drive new TV deals and sponsorships. And, for the moment at least, netball is a relatively cheap sport to invest in. You can have a huge impact with a relatively insignificant investment in the pathway.
“My daughter is part of the Nottingham Forest pathway, and it’s one of the best I’ve seen in any sport. It’s so well-structured, it’s so well coached and the pathway through, wherever they end up dropping off - because invariably some of the players will do - is better than anything I’ve seen in elite sport.”
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