Reliance Jio's new investor Silver Lake is quite the 'sport'

City Football Group (CFG) , the owner of English Premier League side Manchester City, counts Silver Lake as an investor.

In a span of two weeks, Menlo Park, California, USA has become the go-to investment address for Reliance Jio, the telecom arm of India’s most valuable listed firm Reliance Industries.

Both the conglomerate’s new investors, social networking giant Facebook and private equity giant Silver Lake, are headquartered out of Menlo Park, widely considered a mecca for the tech community. Both investors also see a huge opportunity in the world of sports,with Facebook keen to invest in sports content and strike live sports broadcast agreements.

Also read: Jio's valuation is 1.7 times higher than its peers, dwarfs some key sectors

Silver Lake backs of some of the biggest global brands in sports entertainment ranging from football to mixed martial arts to live venue services.

Launched in 1999 as a tech-focused investor, Silver Lake has invested in the likes of heavyweights Dell Technologies, Twitter, Alibaba, Ant Financial and Airbnb and has $43 billion of assets under management. But a closer look at the portfolio of the private equity firm, which sold Skype to Microsoft in 2013, reveals its sporting interests accumulated over the past few years.

"Aguerooooo….I swear you'll never see anything like this ever again. So watch it, drink it in." Every ardent football fan remembers these memorable words from Sky Sports commentator Martin Tyler. Tyler was reacting to  Sergio Aguero’s dramatic title winning goal for Manchester City on May 13th, 2012, the last day of the English Premier League. Aguero struck the winner during stoppage time against Queens Park Rangers and broke the hearts of rivals and title contenders Manchester United.

Pardon the burst of sporting nostalgia but to cut a long story short, City Football Group (CFG) , the owner of English Premier League side Manchester City, counts Silver Lake as an investor. In November 2019, CFG, the world's leading private owner and operator of soccer clubs, announced  a US$500 million equity investment by Silver Lake, equivalent to just over 10% of the company's post-investment value. Back then, the deal valued City Football Group at $4.8 billion post-investment with Abu Dhabi United Group as its primary shareholder.

CFG also backs soccer clubs New York City FC, Melbourne City FC, Yokohama F. Marinos in Japan, Club Atletico Torque in Uruguay, Girona FC in Spain and Sichuan Jiuniu FC in China.

Think UFC and think of Ireland’s larger than life “ Notorious” Conor McGregor and his Proper 12 whiskey brand, Brazilian legend Anderson Silva , former ladies champion “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey, who switched to the WWE ( World Wrestling Entertainment) and the humble Russian Khabib Nurmagomedov, who wrestled with bear cubs during his childhood.

In 2016, in the most expensive transaction in sports history, UFC was sold to Endeavour for $4 billion. Endeavour was backed by Silver Lake amongst other investors.

The UFC showcases real combat competition, unlike the WWE, which follows a scripted format. It is the world’s premier mixed martial arts organisation and one of the largest and fastest growing global sports brands which produces more than 40 live events annually. It boasts of the best international fighters using a variety of martial arts styles and disciplines, including wrestling, jujitsu and kickboxing. The firm is one of the largest Pay-Per-View event providers in the world, and its content is broadcast in over 156 countries and territories to nearly 1.1 billion television households worldwide.

What can one say about one of the most iconic sports and entertainment venues in the world? From Mohammed Ali vs Joe Frazier’s “Fight of the Century” in 1971 to Black Mamba Kobe Bryant’s record 61 point explosion against the New York Knicks to ice hockey legend Wayne Gretzky’s emotional farewell to the game in 1999, the venue has seen it all.  Not to forget, Hollywood diva Marilyn Monroe singing “Happy Birthday, Mr President “ at US President John F Kennedy’s birthday party in 1962 and the star-studded Concert For New York City following the September 11 terrorist attacks.  Madison Square Garden also serves as home to the New York Knicks and New York Rangers professional sports franchises.

Silver Lake owns a minority stake in the NYSE listed Madison Square Garden Company, which also owns other popular venues like Hulu Theater, Radio City Music Hall and Beacon Theatre, the Forum in Inglewood, California and The Chicago Theatre. With flexible seating capacities and configurations from 2,800 to 21,000, it is a provider of premium live experiences.