From Courts to Capital: US Open’s Record Haul & Premier League’s £3B Spree

Good morning, ! This week we’re breaking down the US Open’s $623.8M record haul, Gerard Piqué’s $3B bet on reinventing the Davis Cup, the global esports boom led by India and Saudi Arabia, the Premier League’s £3B transfer arms race, Formula 1’s rise as a $600M media empire, and why private stadium projects cost 2x more—on purpose.

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DATA DIVE

The $623M Serve: US Open Smashes Records and Traditions

The 2025 US Open didn’t just break records—it rewrote the playbook. For the first time, attendance crossed 1 million (1.05M to be exact), while revenue hit $623.8M, up 7.4% YoY. But the big money came in from corporate hospitality (+17.3%) and ticketing (+12.5%), showing that fans don’t mind a $39 cocktail if it comes with a killer view of Ashe. Meanwhile, the prize pool ballooned to $90M, appeasing star players (for now). The USTA is spending like a tech unicorn, committing $800M to renovations, including luxury suites and a $250M performance center. On-court, the question isn’t who wins—it’s whether players will ever get more than their 15% revenue slice.

Read the Full Report HERE

MEDIA & SPORTS

F1’s $600M Film and 827M Fans Signal a New Media Empire

Formula 1 is no longer just racing—it’s a 21st-century content platform.

The first half of 2025 has been a case study in sports media reinvention. F1 The Movie, starring Brad Pitt, became the highest-grossing sports film in history, clearing $600M at the box office and marking Apple’s biggest theatrical success to date. It’s not just Hollywood crossover—it’s ecosystem play: filmed live at Grands Prix with 2,000 hours of footage and 1,900 crew members.

Meanwhile, the sport’s fanbase has reached 827 million, up 12% YoY, with surging growth in China (+39%) and the U.S. (+11%). Digital engagement is up across the board: F1’s social following rose 21% YoY to 107.6M, YouTube views for highlights spiked 30%, and the Australian GP alone pulled 13M views in one week.

TV is holding strong too. Live U.S. viewership is up 23% over 2024, with seven ESPN broadcasts breaking viewership records. Media rights are following: Tencent, Globo, and Bell Media all inked new long-term deals, as F1 locks in distribution ahead of its 2026 regulation reset.

Why it matters: F1 isn’t just scaling sport—it’s building an IP empire. For investors, broadcasters, and brands, it’s a model to watch: proprietary content + live events + digital monetization = media flywheel. (More)

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INVESTOR CORNER

Premier League Spending Hits £3B: The Private Capital Arms Race Continues

The Premier League’s summer transfer window just crossed £3.087B, shattering its own record and outspending the Bundesliga, La Liga, Ligue 1, and Serie A combined. The headliner? Alexander Isak's £125M move to Liverpool, now the most expensive British transfer ever.

This isn't just about big names changing shirts. It's another signal of English football's unique investment model. Flush with global media rights, aggressive commercial strategies, and relaxed ownership rules, the Premier League offers club owners—many backed by sovereign funds, U.S. private equity, or institutional capital—a playground for asymmetric bets. Unlike continental Europe, where financial sustainability is still a regulatory priority, England’s top flight increasingly resembles a privatized entertainment vehicle: capital in, trophies (maybe) out.

Newcastle, for example, sold Isak and immediately redeployed £55M for Yoane Wissa. Fulham spent a club-record £34.6M, and newly promoted Sunderland made five major moves. Private money isn’t just buying assets—it’s dictating velocity.

Why it matters: If the rest of Europe remains constrained by cashflow logic and governance oversight, the Premier League’s “PE-fueled” spending spree could deepen continental talent concentration—and permanently skew the economics of global football. (More)

ENTREPRENEURS

The $3B Tennis Gambit

Gerard Piqué hung up his boots but not his ambition. Through Kosmos Group, the ex-Barcelona defender is attempting to do for the Davis Cup what FIFA did for the World Cup: condense chaos into a week-long global spectacle. Backed by a $3 billion overhaul, Kosmos is betting that centralizing the event will lure star players, sponsors, and—most importantly—TV eyeballs. Traditionalists are sulking over the death of home-and-away ties, but Piqué argues modernization is survival. Think less “weekend tennis” and more “sports festival.” Whether this is a visionary pivot or a $3B vanity project, Piqué has turned a 119-year-old relic into one of the boldest experiments in sports business. (More)

TOGETHER WITH PACASO

How 433 Investors Unlocked 400X Return Potential

Institutional investors back startups to unlock outsized returns. Regular investors have to wait. But not anymore. Thanks to regulatory updates, some companies are doing things differently.

Take Revolut. In 2016, 433 regular people invested an average of $2,730. Today? They got a 400X buyout offer from the company, as Revolut’s valuation increased 89,900% in the same timeframe.

No wonder 10K+ everyday people are taking the chance on Pacaso.

Founded by a former Zillow exec, Pacaso’s co-ownership tech reshapes the $1.3T vacation home market. They’ve earned $110M+ in gross profit to date, including 41% YoY growth in 2024 alone. They even reserved the Nasdaq ticker PCSO.

The same institutional investors behind Uber, Venmo, and eBay backed Pacaso. And you can join them. But not for long. Pacaso’s investment opportunity ends September 18.

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TECH & INFRASTRUCTURE

Private Stadium Projects Cost 2x More—By Design

New data from Mortenson analyzing 39 sports venue builds (2010–2025) reveals a stark split: 100% privately funded stadiums cost $35,106 per seat, compared to $17,545 when public contributions are involved.

That’s not inefficiency, it’s strategy.

Fully private deals are typically driven by ownership groups aiming to maximize monetizable assets: more premium seating, exclusive hospitality zones, entertainment districts, and mixed-use real estate. Publicly co-funded venues, by contrast, tend to prioritize core capacity and political optics—less focus on luxury, more on "community access."

This bifurcation is reshaping the economics of venue finance. As more ownership groups seek autonomy and upside, we’re seeing a new class of stadiums emerge—less like civic infrastructure, more like vertically integrated real estate plays.

Why it matters: For sports investors and dealmakers, the funding structure of a stadium project isn’t just a footnote. It’s a forecast of the asset’s strategic orientation, revenue potential, and long-term ROI. (More)

eSPORTS

From Niche to National Priority

Esports is graduating from “subculture” to mainstream industry, and the fastest growth isn’t happening where you think. India (26.7% CAGR) is the rocket ship—mobile-first gaming, 700M+ smartphone users, and state support (Digital India, Startup India) have transformed casual play into serious business. Saudi Arabia (25.2% CAGR) is close behind, using Vision 2030 billions to buy publishers and host mega-events like Gamers8. Meanwhile, the anchors (China, USA, Germany) continue scaling—China with its 500M+ gamers, the U.S. with Twitch and Call of Duty leagues, Germany with Gamescom. The takeaway: the next decade of esports growth is global—but the most lucrative wins are in emerging hotspots where governments, sponsors, and fans are all-in. (More)

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