Lacrosse League Expands to San Diego With Alibaba Billionaire

  • Tsai is said to pay $5 million, has greater sports ambitions
  • Average attendance was up 12% across league last year
Photographer: Marcin Kilarski/Getty Images/EyeEm
Lock
This article is for subscribers only.

Alibaba Executive Vice Chairman Joe Tsai has bought the National Lacrosse League’s expansion team in San Diego, bringing another billionaire owner to a league with plans to add franchises and expand its digital footprint.

Tsai, who has a net worth of $11.4 billion, paid about $5 million for the yet-to-be-named franchise, according to a person with knowledge of the transaction who asked to not be named because the terms are private. NLL spokeswoman Ashley Dabb declined to comment on the terms of the deal.