Israeli basketball player Denny Avdija There may soon be an uproar in Qatar’s interest, at least in a modest way. This is because the country’s sovereign wealth fund, the Qatari Investment Authority (QIA), is set to buy a 5% stake in parent company Monumental Sports & Entertainment. According to multiple reports, Avdija’s company with the NBA team, the Washington Wizards, the NHL’s Washington Capitals and the WNBA’s Washington Mystics.
Qatar and Israel have no formal diplomatic ties, although the Gulf state last November allowed direct flights to and from Israel for the FIFA World Cup. Now, sports seem to be tying the two countries together again.
According to Sportico’s report, if the league approves the deal, it will be the first time a sovereign wealth fund has bought ownership in a US team. NBA spokesman Mike Bass said the league’s Board of Governors decided in November to allow a “passive, non-controlling”. Minority investment in NBA teams by institutional investors, including university endowments, foreign and domestic pension funds, and sovereign wealth funds, is subject to a set of policy guidelines adopted at the time.
Qatar in the international sports market
Although the deal is worth 4 million dollars Qatar’s first entry into US sports teamsThe Middle Eastern country has involved itself in international sports markets.
Qatar hosted the soccer World Cup for the first time last year and holds a majority stake in Paris Saint-Germain. Last year, Qatari Sports Investments, a subsidiary of QIA, bought 21.7% shares of Portuguese sports club SC Braga Avdija, who is 22, played for Israeli club Maccabi Tel Aviv before being drafted by the Wizards in 2020 . The Washington Wizards and QIA did not respond to comment by press time.