LeBron's Old Liverpool Stake Would Be Worth $124 Million Today

Back in 2011, basketball star LeBron James made a clever business move. Instead of taking a standard cash payout for a marketing partnership, he took a two percent slice of Liverpool Football Club. At the time, that stake was worth about 6.5 million dollars. The club was struggling with debt, so the price was right for a long term gamble.

Fast forward to today, and that exact two percent stake would be worth roughly 124 million dollars. That represents a nineteen fold increase on his original investment, driven by the massive rise in global soccer valuations. Forbes now values Liverpool at an incredible 6.2 billion dollars, placing it among the most valuable sports teams in the world.

James did not hold onto that specific soccer slice forever. In 2021, he and his business partner swapped their football shares for a direct stake in Fenway Sports Group, the parent company of the club. This kind of patient equity building offers a strong contrast to the fast paced world of digital fan tokens and quick crypto trading that fans see in sports today.