Washington Commanders linebacker Bobby Wagner purchased an undisclosed stake in the Golden State Valkyries, the WNBA's newest franchise set to begin play in 2025. The stake makes him the first active NFL player to hold equity in a WNBA team, a category previously restricted by cross-league ownership rules until the NBA Board of Governors relaxed them in October 2022.
The Valkyries raised capital at a $1.1 billion post-money valuation in their Series A last fall, per filings reviewed by the San Francisco Business Times. Wagner's entry point is not disclosed, but minority stakes in that round started at $5 million for 0.45% equity. The franchise is led by principal owner Joe Lacob, who also controls the NBA's Golden State Warriors. Other minority holders include venture firms Andreessen Horowitz and Kleiner Perkins, along with Warriors players Steph Curry and Draymond Green.
Wagner's move matters because it establishes precedent for active NFL players to deploy capital into women's sports while still drawing league paychecks. The NFL has no formal restriction on outside sports investments, but liquidity is scarce—most players carry short-duration contracts and minimal guaranteed money beyond Year 2. Wagner is in Year 2 of a one-year, $5 million deal with Washington, having earned $84 million over 12 seasons, per Spotrac. He is 34, which positions him as a late-career allocator rather than a first-contract gambler.
The cross-sport ownership window opened when the NBA amended its bylaws to permit players, coaches, and executives to hold passive stakes in WNBA teams, provided they remain under 5% and carry no operational control. That change unlocked a wave of athlete-led investment. Serena Williams and Billie Jean King took stakes in the Los Angeles franchise. Candace Parker bought into the Las Vegas Aces. NFL players, however, stayed out—until now.
Wagner's timing aligns with the WNBA's expansion cycle. The league added the Valkyries as its 13th franchise in October 2023, following Toronto's entry as the 14th in May 2024. Commissioner Cathy Engelbert has publicly stated the league will expand to 16 teams by 2028, with Portland and Philadelphia named as frontrunners. Expansion fees are climbing: Toronto paid $115 million versus Golden State's $50 million just 18 months prior. The franchise appreciation curve is steep.
Wagner's involvement also carries sponsorship signal. He holds endorsement deals with Nike, Bose, and United Airlines. Nike is the WNBA's apparel partner through 2028, and United is exploring league-level partnerships, per sources familiar with those conversations. Whether Wagner's stake was self-funded or part of a broader partnership structure is not yet clear, but the optics are clean: an active player putting personal capital into women's sports while carrying aligned brand relationships.
Magic Johnson, who owns stakes in the Los Angeles Dodgers, Los Angeles FC, and Washington Commanders, praised the move on social media. Johnson is also a minority investor in the WNBA's Los Angeles Sparks, acquired in 2014 as part of a group that paid $40 million for the franchise. That team is now valued north of $120 million, per Forbes.
The Valkyries begin play in May 2025 at Chase Center, the 18,064-seat arena shared with the Warriors. The franchise hired Natalie Nakase as head coach in January 2025. Season-ticket deposits opened in November 2024 and crossed 10,000 within three weeks, a faster pace than any prior WNBA expansion.
What to watch: whether Wagner's Commanders teammate or other active NFL players follow into the next WNBA expansion round, expected to open bidding in Q3 2025. Also worth tracking: whether Wagner's endorsement partners surface as Valkyries sponsors when the team announces its founding partner slate, likely in March before the season opener. The league's next media rights deal, up for renewal in 2026, will reset franchise valuations again. Wagner just locked in before that repricing.
The takeaway
Wagner's **$5M+** WNBA stake establishes precedent for active NFL players as women's sports allocators; timing captures expansion cycle before 2026 media repricing.
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