It’s not every day one of the largest operators in college sports gets bought by a private equity firm. Tuesday was that day.
TPG is finalizing the purchase of Learfield, one of the most significant multimedia rights and technology companies in the industry. The acquisition, which sources told Sports Business Journal is expected to be valued somewhere between $1.8 and $2 billion, underscores the increasingly commercialized nature of college sports.
“We started hearing from a number of prospective investors about 18 months ago,” Learfield CEO/President Cole Gahagan told SBJ. “We made the decision that based on the convergence of two factors — the company doing really well and investor interest being really high — it was the right time to start having conversations, which we opened midway through last year and could not have landed with a better partner than TPG.”
That TPG is diving into sports shouldn’t come as a surprise. The firm owned a controlling stake in CAA before selling it in 2023. It also partnered with Masters champ Rory McIlroy last year through his investment firm, Symphony Ventures, to create TPG Sports.
More broadly, the firm’s entry into college sports marks a major moment in private equity’s recent circling of the enterprise.
While other firms have pursued school or conference-level deals, TPG has stated it’s not interested in investing in individual athletic programs or universities. It stresses Learfield is an avenue into a growth space (college sports), compared to an entrance into its client base.
For example, rather than investing directly into Michigan, Ohio State or Texas, TPG is putting its money into Learfield, whose business units can help tap into the thematic growth that’s occurring in the industry and allows the firm to play into that trend.
“We’ve looked at the business multiple times, and, for us, this time represents the most compelling period, when you think about the ongoing needs universities have to grow revenue and support student athletes,” TPG Partner Peter McGoohan told SBJ. “Learfield is very well positioned to help its university partners continue to grow.”
Learfield, of course, has had its share of owners. The current structure came about through a 2018 merger with IMG College, a company formed in 2007 via acquisitions involving Host Communications and The Collegiate Licensing Company. It also counted private equity as part of its previous ownership groups.
So, no, PE involvement in this particular part of college sports isn’t novel. The TPG purchase, however, feels notable given the firm’s ties to the larger sports world and the potential it has to expedite the growth of one of college athletics’ major players.
For as much prognosticating as there’s been around PE entering college sports, this feels like one of the more significant moves to date.
