The post White Sox enter into long-term investment agreement with Justin Ishbia appeared first on Sox On 35th.
The next White Sox’ owner has essentially been decided: Justin Ishbia.
This afternoon, Jesse Rogers of ESPN tweeted that the White Sox have announced a long-term partnership with billionaire Justin Ishbia that involves a clear path forward for future ownership of the team. According to the post, beginning in 2029, Jerry Reinsdorf will have the option to sell the controlling interest of the White Sox to Ishbia. Starting in 2034, Ishbia will have the option to acquire the controlling interest of the team from Reinsdorf. The difference is that from 2029-2033, a change in ownership is reliant on Reinsdorf being willing to sell.
So, in short, Reinsdorf will have the same control over the team as usual. However, the earliest end date for that is now 2029, with the latest likely around 2034. According to the White Sox’ press release, nothing is expected to change before that time.
Justin and his brother Mat were named as potential suitors for the Twins by Bloomberg in December 2024. This came once the Pohlad family announced their plans to explore selling the Minnesota franchise after 40 years of ownership. The Pohlads originally bought the team from Calvin Griffith for $44 million in 1984 and have turned it into a $1.7 billion organization. The Ishbia-led group was the first to show a serious interest in purchasing the franchise, with a deal expected to be done as early as Opening Day.
Around this same time, Kurt Badenhausen and Eben Novy-Williams of Sportico uncovered the billionaire brothers’ small stake in the White Sox that was purchased back in 2021. Though the Ishbias’ acquisition went unreported, people with knowledge anonymously told the publication that the brothers’ stake “represents a mid-single-digit percentage of the team.”
Then, in February of this year, Justin discontinued his pursuit of ownership of the Minnesota Twins in favor of buying a larger ownership share of the White Sox. Those close to the situation at the time believed Ishbia could eventually look to buy the shares of owner Jerry Reinsdorf and other partners to assume controlling interest of the team. This is now the path forward for that.
The important part of this story in the near term is that for 2025 and 2026, Ishbia will make “capital infusions” into the White Sox as a limited partner to support ongoing operations and pay down existing debt. With the latest news that the Chicago Fire will be building (and privately funding) their new stadium on part of The 78 development that the White Sox have a vested interest in, perhaps this provides a path forward for Reinsdorf and the White Sox to also be included in the development plans without the need for public funding – which has been a large hold up to this point.
This is a developing story, so we will provide updates as they become available.
Follow us @SoxOn35th for more throughout the season!
Featured Image: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
The post White Sox enter into long-term investment agreement with Justin Ishbia appeared first on Sox On 35th.