New York-based private equity investor MSP Sports Capital has acquired a majority stake in New Zealand’s SailGP team, the Black Foils, further extending its sports portfolio and marking another step in the continued commercialisation of the sailing league, according to a report by Reuters.
The deal, confirmed by SailGP organisers on Friday, adds to MSP Sports Capital’s growing holdings across global sports properties, which include interests in initiatives such as the X Games League and a number of European football clubs. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.
The Black Foils, led by high-profile sailors Peter Burling and Blair Tuke, compete in the SailGP, which features national teams racing identical high-speed F50 catamarans.
Following the transaction, SailGP said all 13 national teams in the league are now backed by strategic third-party owners, completing a key phase in its shift away from centrally owned teams toward a private ownership model.
SailGP was launched in 2019 by Larry Ellison and sailing veteran Russell Coutts, with the ambition of combining elite racing with a commercially scalable franchise structure similar to other global sports leagues.
MSP Sports Capital said its investment aligns with a strategy focused on high-performance sports properties and internationally recognised franchises, with an emphasis on growth potential and global audience expansion.
The New Zealand team will continue under the leadership of Burling and Tuke as co-chief executives. The squad is set to return to competition at the upcoming SailGP event in Halifax, Canada, racing a newly built F50 following a high-speed incident earlier in the season that resulted in damage after a collision with the French team.
The acquisition underscores accelerating institutional investor interest in SailGP’s franchise model as the league continues to position itself as a premium, team-based global sailing competition.
