Major League Volleyball announced a Los Angeles expansion franchise Monday, backed by $50 million-plus from Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong and investor Ben Priest, with play scheduled for the 2027 season. The move adds a sixth team to a circuit that launched in 2021 and has remained largely under the commercial radar of institutional sports capital.
Soon-Shiong, who bought the *Los Angeles Times* for $500 million in 2018 and holds a minority stake in the Lakers, is the highest-profile owner to enter the league. His involvement signals a bet on indoor volleyball's hidden economics: steady ticket revenue from college-heavy fan bases, minimal venue costs when piggybacking NBA or hockey arenas, and sponsorship interest from athletic apparel and wellness brands underserved by the Big Four. The league plays a compact 14-match regular season, mostly on weekends, which keeps travel budgets manageable and star players available despite international obligations.
The timing matters. U.S. women's indoor volleyball drew 1.8 million linear viewers for its gold-medal match at the 2024 Paris Olympics, the highest domestic rating for the sport in two decades. Participation numbers are climbing in youth club programs across California, where college programs at USC, UCLA, and Long Beach State routinely fill 2,000–4,000 seat venues. MLV's existing franchises in Austin, Atlanta, Omaha, Grand Rapids, and Salt Lake City average 3,200 paid attendance, per league disclosures. Los Angeles, with twice the metro population of any current host city, offers upside if the franchise can secure a mid-sized venue like Galen Center or a reconfigured section of Crypto.com Arena.
The investment structure is worth noting. Soon-Shiong and Priest are taking an equity stake in the franchise entity, not just buying a territorial license. League sources say expansion fees for new teams have been running between $8 million and $12 million, meaning the $50 million figure likely includes working capital for multi-year operations, venue build-outs, and player acquisition. MLV operates under a quasi-single-entity model where the league owns player contracts centrally, then assigns them to franchises via draft and allocation. That reduces individual owner risk but also caps upside unless the league's collective media and sponsorship revenue grows.
Soon-Shiong's other holdings include NantHealth, a cancer-informatics company, and a portfolio of biotech and data ventures. His sports moves tend to carry patient-capital logic: the *Times* purchase was as much civic positioning as media strategy, and his Lakers minority stake came through an existing relationship with Jeanie Buss. The volleyball play fits that pattern. He's buying operational control of a franchise in a league with credible fundamentals but no immediate path to nine-figure valuations. The question is whether his network can unlock sponsorship dollars from pharma, wellness, or tech brands that view volleyball's college-educated, female-majority audience as underpriced inventory.
Ben Priest, the co-investor, has a background in real estate and private equity but has kept a low profile in sports dealmaking. His involvement suggests the franchise may pursue real estate-adjacent revenue, possibly a training facility with retail or mixed-use components. MLV franchises in other markets have experimented with club-level membership models that bundle tickets, training access, and youth clinics. Los Angeles has enough volleyball infrastructure to support that, particularly in the South Bay and Orange County corridors.
The 2027 launch gives the franchise 18 months to hire a general manager, secure a venue deal, and begin ticketing. The league's next collective media-rights negotiation is set for early 2026, which will clarify whether streaming platforms or linear sports networks see value in live volleyball inventory. Current matches air on a mix of local broadcast and league-owned digital channels. If Soon-Shiong can leverage his *Times* media relationships to secure regular coverage or a co-production deal, the franchise gains credibility before selling its first season ticket.
MLV has not disclosed player salary structures, but league insiders say the cap per team is around $1.2 million annually, with top players earning $80,000–$120,000 plus housing stipends. That's below overseas club salaries in Italy or Turkey, where elite Americans can earn $200,000+ per season. The league's pitch to players is domestic stability, lower travel, and the chance to build the sport's U.S. commercial base. Los Angeles improves that pitch: better sponsorship exposure, more media opportunities, and a chance to stay near national team training facilities in nearby Anaheim.
The franchise name, colors, and venue have not been announced. Soon-Shiong's team is reportedly in talks with USC about using Galen Center for select matches, and with AEG about smaller configurations at Crypto.com Arena or The Novo. The South Bay Sports Arena in Redondo Beach, which seats 4,000, is also under consideration.
Watch for a GM hire by late 2025, likely someone with college volleyball or Olympic program ties. The league's player draft for 2027 expansion slots is tentatively set for March 2026. Sponsorship announcements will be the tell: if Soon-Shiong secures a healthcare or wellness brand as a founding partner, it validates the investment thesis. If the franchise leans on generic athletic apparel deals, it's a longer build.