How Much Profit Each NFL Franchise Could Generate with Private Equity Investment

With the National Football League (NFL) announcing this week that private equity investors will be allowed to buy up to a 10% stake in a team, we have ranked each team based on its potential year-on-year profitability.

NFL franchises often appreciate significantly in value year-on-year, offering private equity investors the opportunity for substantial returns on investment. The league's popularity and revenue streams from broadcasting rights, merchandising, and sponsorships contribute to the steady growth in franchise valuations.

So, which teams offer the greatest potential returns on a major investment, based on their most recent year-on-year valuation growth?

The Miami Dolphins top our ranking with a 24% growth rate, which would lead to a potential return of $136.8 million from a $570 million investment.

The Las Vegas Raiders and Dallas Cowboys follow closely, with potential returns of $136.4 million and $117 million, respectively, despite the Cowboys having the highest valuation at $9 billion. Teams like the Tennessee Titans and Philadelphia Eagles also demonstrate significant potential returns, emphasizing the varying investment opportunities across teams with different valuations.

On the lower end, teams such as the Los Angeles Chargers, Buffalo Bills, and Green Bay Packers show more modest potential returns, correlating with their lower growth percentages, ranging from 7% to 9%.

For instance, an investment in the Chargers would yield a return of $29.05 million, the lowest among the ranked teams. This variation in potential returns underscores the importance of growth rate over mere valuation when considering the profitability of investments in NFL franchises.

Explore the dataset below to discover how much profit an NFL franchise could generate from a 10% investment

Notes on the data: Analysts at SportingPost.com took the 2024 Forbes valuation for each NFL franchise and their percentage increase in valuation between 2023 and 2024. With these figures they extrapolated how much money would be generated with a 10% investment into each franchise within a year.