The Real Risks of Sports Investing — and How The Champion Fund Structures Around Them

A Note on Track Record

The Champion Fund is a newer vehicle, and any allocator conducting proper due diligence will ask about track record. That is the right question. While the fund does not yet have the multi-cycle performance history of established PE platforms, the current portfolio already offers evidence of the thesis executing in practice.

Ipswich Town FC — a current holding — was acquired at Championship-level valuation after relegation from the Premier League. The club earned promotion back to the Premier League in the 2023–24 season, and the valuation step-functioned upward to reflect EPL-level media rights income and comparable transaction multiples. This is the repricing thesis, not in theory, but executed.

SI Tickets — a current holding in the Sports Tech category — is currently outperforming its initial revenue projections, demonstrating that the sports technology infrastructure thesis has traction beyond the category argument.

These are early data points, not a long-term track record. But they are evidence that the thesis can be executed — not just articulated.

Illiquidity Risk

Sports assets are illiquid. The underlying investments — franchise stakes, sports technology equity, real estate development — cannot be rapidly converted to cash on demand. This is the defining characteristic of the asset class and cannot be engineered away at the asset level.

The Champion Fund's interval structure addresses this at the fund level without pretending it does not exist at the asset level. The Fund will offer to repurchase 5% of its outstanding Shares at NAV, in February and August each year.† Offers may be oversubscribed, in which case tenders are prorated — so an investor is not assured of selling every Share tendered in a given window. Investors who need more liquidity than this are not well-served by this allocation, which is why position sizing and investor-level liquidity planning matter.

Valuation Opacity

Sports assets are not publicly traded. Their valuations are determined by infrequent comparable transactions, revenue multiples, and negotiated appraisals — not daily market prices. This creates a risk that valuations may not immediately reflect changes in underlying conditions, either positive or negative.

The Champion Fund addresses this through transparent methodology and consistent application of valuation frameworks. Comparable transaction data from league-level trades informs multi-asset valuations. Revenue-based multiples are benchmarked against available public and private comparables. The methodology is disclosed and applied consistently rather than managed to produce specific outcomes.

Concentration and League Risk

Over-concentration in any single league, asset type, or geography creates fragility. A regulatory change affecting NFL ownership rules, or a media rights cycle that disappoints for a particular league, should not be capable of materially impairing the entire portfolio.

The five-category structure — Teams & Leagues, Sports Tech, Media & Services, Real Estate & Hospitality, Thematic Funds — is how the Fund addresses this. Each category has distinct return drivers, different regulatory environments, and different sensitivities to any single risk factor. The structure is deliberate, not incidental.

Execution Risk

The most underappreciated risk in sports investing is execution — the operational challenge of actually creating value in a portfolio company. Managing minority governance rights, building commercial value in a franchise, executing on platform consolidation in sports services — these require capabilities beyond capital deployment.

This is why manager expertise and operating context matter so much in sports investing. Financial engineering alone does not create the returns that sports can generate. Operational knowledge, relationships, and the ability to actively contribute to a portfolio company's trajectory are what differentiate top-quartile managers.

† The Fund's first repurchase offer is scheduled for August 2027.

This content is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice or an offer to buy or sell any security. Past performance is not indicative of future results. All investments involve risk, including the potential loss of principal. Please read The Champion Fund's prospectus carefully before investing.