Billionaire Ted Leonsis could be on the verge of becoming the second person to own three franchises among the four major North American sports. According to The Athletic, a group led by Leonsis is emerging as the frontrunner to buy the Washington Nationals.
The group also includes billionaire David Rubenstein, the co-founder of the Carlisle Group.
Leonsis currently owns the Washington Wizards, Capitals, and Mystics. If his group lands the Nationals, he’ll join the Kroenke family, who owns the Los Angeles Rams of the NFL, the NHL’s Colorado Avalanche, and the NBA’s Denver Nuggets in addition to the Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer.
The Nationals are owned by the Lerner family, with Mark Lerner as the principal owner. The Lerners have explored the potential sale of the MLB club since April. From the onset, Leonsis has emerged as a potential buyer.
The sale isn’t imminent and likely will not be completed before the league’s winter meetings in December. The Lerners bought the Nats from MLB in 2006, relocating the team from Montreal for $450 million.
However, a deal may get held up by the Nationals’ current TV rights with the Mid-Atlantic Sports Network. The Baltimore Orioles own more than three-fourths of the regional sports network. The Orioles owning the TV rights of the Nationals is a byproduct of an agreement between MLB and the Orioles’ owner Peter Angelos to allow the Montreal Expos to move to Washington, D.C. At the time, D.C. was widely-considered part of the Orioles’ territory.
The two MLB clubs have been in litigation in recent years over the Nationals believing they had not gotten paid their fair share. An arbitration panel ruled the Nationals are owed $105 million, but the Orioles appealed the decision to the New York State Court of Appeals.
Coincidentally, Leonsis’ Monumental Sports Entertainment purchased NBC Sports Washington earlier this year. A resolution to the MASN TV rights fees dispute could be part of the Nationals’ sale to Leonsis.
NBCSW owns the primary rights of the Wizards, Capitals, and Mystics. If Leonsis buys the Nats, the club may get added to the NBCSW portfolio.
