Former Milwaukee Bucks owner Marc Lasry is close to reaching an agreement to purchase a majority stake in the National Women's Soccer League's North Carolina Courage, a source confirmed to ESPN.
Sportico reported that the deal would value the Courage at $108 million.
If the transaction goes through, Lasry would become the Courage's principal owner, taking over for Steve Malik, who purchased the franchise rights to the Western New York Flash in January 2017 and moved the team to Cary, North Carolina.
Lasry is the president of Avenue Capital Group, whose team of athlete advisors includes former NWSL MVP, U.S. international and World Cup winner Lauren Holiday. Lasry, who sold her stake in the Bucks last year, has been vocal about her desire to invest in women’s sports and previously looked to invest in Angel City FC.
Courage owner Malik and a team spokesman could not be reached for comment.
North Carolina is the only franchise in the 14-team NWSL that has not added a new controlling owner or a new team governor in the past four years. The league has grown from 10 teams in 2021 and is expected to add two more in 2026.
Valuations for NWSL teams have skyrocketed from $3.5 million at the start of 2020 (Seattle Reign FC) to several records this year. The San Diego Wave are in the midst of a two-part sale process valued between $113 million and $120 million, which was a new record in the spring.
Angel City FC set a record in a deal that closed earlier this month. Willow Bay, dean of USC’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, and Disney CEO Bob Iger purchased the Los Angeles-based club for a valuation of $250 million. (The Walt Disney Company is the majority owner of ESPN.)
The Courage have had plenty of success on the field, winning NWSL Championships in 2018 and 2019, the NWSL Shield in 2017, 2018 and 2019, and the NWSL Challenge Cup in 2022 and 2023. The Western New York Flash also won the 2016 NWSL Championship just months before the franchise's relocation.
Off the field, however, the Courage have had problems in Cary, which is a suburb of Raleigh, North Carolina.
The Courage averaged 5,400 fans in 2023, which ranked second to last in the NWSL. The team plays at WakeMed Soccer Park, a 10,000-capacity stadium that opened in 2002 and is publicly owned.
Malik had led efforts to build a soccer stadium on the south side of downtown Raleigh, but those plans have been on hold for years.
However, sports development in Raleigh has continued, and last week the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes announced a $1 billion mixed-use development around their current stadium, which is adjacent to NC State’s football stadium. The stadium is just three miles from WakeMed Soccer Park.
