LeBron James, Ryan Reynolds, Tom Brady and J.J. Watt already hold special keys to the front gate.
Kevin Durant understands the value of gold and the international game
By becoming a minority shareholder of Paris Saint-Germain, an NBA superstar who just made history with his fourth Olympic gold medal in Paris has again raised the profile of the biggest sport in the world.
Durant invested “a few millions dollars of his own money” to buy a stake in PSG, according to ESPN.
Reynolds and Rob McElhenney own Wrexham, James has a stake in Liverpool, Brady bought into Birmingham City and Watt is a Burnley investor.
Durant, a 14-time NBA All-Star, is set to make $51 million with Phoenix Suns this season and is on a four-year, $191 million contract that expires in 2026.
The 35-year-old forward only trails James in scoring among active NBA players and is Team USA’s all-time leading scorer in the Olympics.
Durant’s career earnings on the court surpass $395 million.
The No. 2 overall pick of the 2007 NBA Draft started his career with the Seattle SuperSonics, made his name in Oklahoma City, and won two NBA championships with the Golden State Warriors‘ dynasty before bouncing to Brooklyn and Phoenix.
To win his record fourth gold medal, Durant rejoined former Warriors teammate Steph Curry with Team USA in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Paris St. Germain is preparing for another big season but has key names to replaceCredit: Getty
Curry followed that up by leading Team USA to a tough win over Victor Wembanyama and France to capture gold.
PSG is valued at $4.4 billion, according to Forbes, and recently was the home of Kylian Mbappe.
Lionel Messi and Neymar also were associated with the three-time defending Ligue 1 champions, who sold a minority stake to investment firm Arctos in December 2023.
Qatar Sports Investments are the controlling shareholders of PSG, headed by Nasser Al-Khelaifi.
“We look forward to strengthening our ties and working together with Kevin and boardroom to bring the best in sport and entertainment to fans around the world.â€
Durant’s strong US name recognition should allow PSG to further expand into the United States market, with the 2026 World Cup being primarily played in the US.
Durant collects over $45 million annually in off-the-court endorsements and has collaborated with Nike, Fanatics and FanDuel.
Boardroom is a sports brand co-founded by Durant, who’s also purchased stakes in MLS’ Philadelphia Union, NWSL’s Gotham FC and a Major League Pickleball franchise.
After wining the NBA Rookie of the Year with Seattle in 2007-08, Durant has averaged 27.3 points, 7 rebounds and 4.4 assists while winning two NBA Finals MVPs in his 16-year career.
Wrexham was promoted again, in a sign that the involvement of Reynolds and McElhenney is clearly paying off.
The Wales club fell to Sheffield United 4-2 on Tuesday night in Carabao Cup play.
But the Hollywood-fueled squad has started 1-0 in League One as it attempts to keep moving up the pyramid.
While Jeff Bezos is still searching for a sports franchise to buy, Jerry Jones’ Dallas Cowboys don’t need a Durant-like investment.
The NFL’s most valuable team recently eclipsed the $10 billion mark, becoming the first franchise to reach that historic level despite fan frustration peaking.
But Jones is struggling to pay his star players in the build up to Week 1.
Elsewhere in the US-UK sports crossover world, the USMNT has replaced Gregg Berhalter with Mauricio Pochettino, who was abruptly fired by Chelsea after just one year on the job and finished sixth in the Premier League last season with a young Cole Palmer-led team.