Premier Lacrosse League Eyes Team Sales Beginning in 2028

By 2028 or "soon thereafter," the Premier Lacrosse League (PLL) wants to begin selling teams to individual owners, CNBC has reported. The news from CNBC came after talking with PFF co-founder Paul Rabil.

According to Rabil, he wants the PLL to expand to as many as 16 teams, with each franchise owned independently, as in other professional sports in the United States. Right now, the league itself owns all 8 PLL teams, and it's in its eighth season. 

Rabil was a superstar with Major League Lacrosse from 2008 to 2018. Rabil, now 40, started PLL with his brother Mike after his playing days, and in 2020, the PLL and MLL merged. 

The PLL is one of several emerging professional leagues, along with the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL), League One Volleyball, and the Basketball Africa League. 

League One Volleyball has started selling teams to owners who are not only interested but also willing to pay expansion fees to take control. As for the Basketball Africa League, that process is beginning, per NBA Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum.

Growing Demand for Sports Team Ownership

With rising valuations of sports teams in leagues like the MLB, NBA, NFL, and NHL, demand for owning a professional team of any kind has risen. However, teams in the "Big Four" sports are becoming too pricey, leading to greater interest in "cheaper" teams such as those in the MLS, the National Women's Soccer League, or the WNBA. 

Now, the PLL wants to be in a position where its teams can be worth upward of $1 billion.

Olympics Could Accelerate the PLL's Growth

In a recent Series E funding round, the PLL raised $100 million to help grow the league. Rabil is looking toward the 2028 Summer Olympics to drive growth and exposure, as this will be the first time in 120 years that Lacrosse is an Olympic sport. 

“The first allotment of tickets sold out in 48 hours for lacrosse, so there’s good hype building,” Rabil said.

Right now, the PLL is backed by investor firms and wealthy people. 

That said, Rabil told CNBC that he'd be open to selling the league to a company like TKO Group, which owns the UFC, WWE, and more.