San Diego Wave FC is being sold at a record-breaking $113 million valuation, as Sportico first reported on Thursday.
Billionaire owner Ron Burkle is selling the club to the Levine Lichtman family in a two-part deal, which could later result in the transaction sitting at $120 million. It nearly doubles the previous NWSL high of $63 million paid by the Bhathal family for the Portland Thorns in 2023.
It’s also higher than the $90 million valuation that Sportico valued the team at in October of last year, and is second-highest in the league behind Angel City’s $180 million valuation.
According to The Athletic, part of the deal includes Burkle remaining as the club’s principal owner through the end of this season.
“We are proud of the unprecedented success we have had as an expansion team and I am confident that [the Levine Leichtman] family’s investment will contribute to the growth of our team and the San Diego community,” Burkle told Sportico in a statement that confirmed the family coming in as a minority investor.
The number is a massive turnaround for Burkle, who paid a $2 million expansion fee for the club, which began NWSL play in 2022. Burkle had backed out of a bid to bring an MLS club to Sacramento in 2021, instead opting to back San…
