Tom Brady was announced last week as the minority owner of the Las Vegas Aces, jumping from a legendary career in the NFL to the WNBA.
Like seven-time Super Bowl winner Brady, the Aces have a championship history, having won their first WNBA title last season.
It wasn’t revealed what percentage of the team the Patriots and Bucs legend owns, but he seemed excited to make the switch to ownership.
“I’ve always been a huge fan of women’s sports, and I admire the work the Aces players, staff and WNBA continue to do to grow the sport and empower future generations of athletes,” he said.
“To be able to contribute in any way to this mission as a member of the Aces organization is an incredible honor.”
Tom Brady recently joined the WNBA’s Las Vegas Aces ownership group
Brady spoke to the Las Vegas Aces’ Kelsey Plum (2nd L) and Chelsea Gray last year
But while Brady was a unique talent on the gridiron, he’s far from the first athlete to get involved on the ownership side.
Here lists some other big names to move up…
Serena Williams
After an illustrious tennis career that included 23 Grand Slam singles titles, Serena Williams is still chasing greatness off the court.
Along with her husband, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, and daughter Olympia, Williams became the main investor in NWSL team Angel City FC, which debuted last year.
But it wasn’t the tennis star’s first foray into ownership.
Serena Williams is a major investor in NWSL club Angel City FC, which debuted last year
In 2009, she and her sister Venus became minority female owners with the Miami Dolphins — making them the first black female minority owners in the NFL.
Angel City finished eighth out of 12 teams in its debut season and last week welcomed Matthew Stafford and his family as investors.
USWNT legends Mia Hamm, Julie Foudy and Abby Wambach are also on the star-studded list of investors.
Lewis Hamilton
As of August 2022, the NFL has Formula 1 royalties in its ranks.
The Denver Broncos were bought by the Walton-Bum group for $4.65 billion, and they added Lewis Hamilton as an investor before the deal went through.
The group is led by Walmart billionaire heir Rob Walton.
While Hamilton doesn’t appear to have made a public trip to Denver just yet, he did confirm the news on Twitter at the time.
Lewis Hamilton shared a picture of his dog Roscoe as he announced his partnership with the Broncos
“Excited to join an incredible group of owners and be a part of @Broncos history!!” he wrote.
“It’s an honor to work with a world-class team and to serve as an example of the value of more diverse leadership across all sports. Roscoe already thinks he’s made the team,’ he said.’
After a disastrous 5-12 season last year, having the seven-time F1 champion in the organization certainly won’t hurt the Broncos.
Patrick Mahomes
After his second Super Bowl win in February, Patrick Mahomes is still at the top of his game — and the NFL’s top quarterback.
Still, that hasn’t stopped him from putting more on his plate outside of football, as he’s an investor in both baseball and football.
He first dipped into the ownership pool in 2021, acquiring a minority stake in Kansas City, his chiefs’ siblings, the Royals.
Patrick Mahomes throws a first pitch for the Royals at Kauffman Stadium in 2018
Mahomes reportedly poured $10 million into the baseball team.
But the soccer star wasn’t done with that, as he went on to invest in both of KC’s pro soccer teams — MLS’s Sporting KC and NWSL’s Kansas City Current.
Mahomes’ wife Brittany is also a co-owner of the Current.
Michael Jordan
Arguably the biggest name on this list and the only one to be the primary owner of their team, Michael Jordan bought the Charlotte Hornets (then the Bobcats) from Bob Johnson in 2010.
Jordan “only” paid $180 million for the team after a legendary NBA career and a lucrative (still active) Nike partnership.
And Jordan is now reportedly in “serious talks” to sell his majority stake in the franchise, which Forbes has valued at $1.7 billion.
Michael Jordan, seen with NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, has owned the Hornets since 2010 but could sell the team soon
Right now, Jordan is still part of the NBA ownership community, and his Hornets have been utterly unsuccessful during his stint there.
Since Jordan’s first season in Charlotte — 2010-11 — the Hornets have the fifth-worst record in the NBA (421-596) and have yet to win a playoff series.
Jordan previously had a 10 percent stake in the Washington Wizards but had to sell it to comply with NBA rules against player ownership as he made an unforgettable comeback in the nation’s capital.
Lebron James
The Lakers star will follow Jordan into the Basketball Hall of Fame, finished as the NBA’s all-time leading scorer this season and could eventually buy a team like Mike.
At the moment, however, James is a part owner of Liverpool and the Boston Red Sox through Fenway Sports Group.
James first became involved with Liverpool in 2011, with his initial stake of $6.5 million becoming $32 million as of 2018. PSG initially bought the historic Merseyside club for $400m, meaning James acquired a roughly 1 per cent stake in the club.
LeBron James is seen during a visit to Liverpool’s Anfield Stadium in October 2011
In 2021, James increased his stake in FSG and became a minority owner of the Red Sox, which is worth $4.5 billion according to Forbes.
This move was seen as a move toward eventual controlling interest, which Agent Rich Paul says James is interested in.
“Fuck yeah,” Paul told CNBC in 2021. “He takes sport ownership very seriously.”
David Beckham
As part of the deal he signed to play at LA Galaxy in 2007, David Beckham was entitled to a discounted MLS franchise.
The former Manchester United and Real Madrid star exercised that option in 2014 and four years later Inter Miami officially started before making his debut in 2020.
Today the club is valued at $585m by Sportico and Beckham is a co-owner alongside brothers Jose and Jorge Mas, the managing owner.
David Beckham co-owns MLS side Inter Miami alongside brothers Jose and Jorge Mas
Beckham also serves as the club’s president.
In 2021, Beckham and the Mas brothers increased their stake in the club, buying out former co-owners Marcelo Claure and Masayoshi Son, who joined the project in 2014 and 2017 respectively.
And Beckham’s stake in the club could become even more valuable if Miami manages to persuade Lionel Messi to join.
Russell Wilson
Russell Wilson was traded from the Seahawks to the Broncos last year and still has ties to Seattle through his stake in MLS Sounders.
He and his wife Ciara acquired an interest in the team in 2019 — the same year he recorded a career-low interception rate and 31 touchdowns — and it was easy to imagine the quarterback retiring with the Seahawks.
“Seattle, when I came here in 2012, it was a place that I felt like I could call home forever,” he said in a video for the Sounders’ YouTube account.
Russell Wilson and his wife Ciara acquired an interest in the Seattle Sounders in 2019
“And we’re really excited about just building a culture of success. This city is a special place.”
Aside from football, Wilson announced in 2018 that he and Ciara were part of an initiative to bring an MLB team to Portland, Oregon.
No such team has materialized yet, although the MLB commissioner has been open about expanding the MLB to 32 teams.
tap ins
There are many other athletes who own shares in sports franchises.
Kevin Durant and Giants legend Eli Manning both own NWSL team Gotham FC, while Durant owns a minority stake in the Philadelphia Union in the MLS.
His former Nets and Thunder teammate James Harden is also involved in the league through his ownership of the Houston Dynamo – as well as sister club Houston Dash – while boxer Oscar De La Hoya also owns 25 percent of the Dynamo.
Two-time NBA MVP Steve Nash also owns a stake in the Vancouver Whitecaps, while Lakers legend Shaquille O’Neal holds a minority stake in the Sacramento Kings.
Speaking of Lakers legends, Magic Johnson is part of ownership groups for LA’s Dodgers, WNBA’s Sparks and LAFC.
Magic Johnson, seen here last year, became the owner of the Dodgers in 2012