Investingwheresportcreatesenduring value.
Three Lions Capital is a principal-led investment firm built by operators who have owned, built, and grown sports assets across three continents.
A firm built by owners, not allocators.
Three Lions Capital was founded by Brett Johnson and Berke Bakay, two partners who have spent the better part of a decade building sports assets from the ground up. In 2016, they co-founded Phoenix Rising FC, establishing it as one of the most successful clubs in USL history: a championship, three finals appearances, and the longest winning streak in North American soccer.
That track record opened the door to Ipswich Town FC. In 2021, Brett and Berke led an institutional acquisition of the club from League One. Three years of hands-on ownership - new management, new infrastructure, disciplined capital - produced back-to-back promotions to the Premier League, only the fifth time in English football history. In 2025, Three Lions took controlling interest in the club through Portman Holdings, in partnership with Clara Vista and ORG.
Three Lions Capital is the vehicle through which that experience - the network, judgment, and the deal flow it has generated - is deployed at scale.
A thesis, not a mandate.
We invest in sports assets - franchises, operating platforms, and adjacent businesses - where our network creates access and our operating experience creates value.
Sports assets have outperformed public equities over the past two decades. They generate cash flows that are structurally uncorrelated with broader markets, benefit from secular tailwinds in media rights and global fandom, and trade at a persistent discount to intrinsic value when management is weak. Regulatory changes across every major U.S. league have unlocked institutional ownership, accelerating capital formation in a category that has historically been inaccessible.
Why Three Lions
Ownership experience
We have built clubs, constructed stadiums, hired managers, and driven promotions. We invest as owners, not observers.
Proprietary deal flow
Our ownership network across clubs, leagues, and operating platforms generates access to opportunities that are not typically marketed.
Institutional discipline
Transactional rigor, governance, and downside analysis applied to a category where most capital still moves on instinct.
Long-horizon conviction
We invest with patience. Value in sports is built over years: through management, infrastructure, brand, and community.
Investment focus
We pursue three types of opportunities:
Controlling or significant minority stakes in professional sports clubs.
Sports operating platforms with durable infrastructure and recurring revenue.
Adjacent businesses - entertainment, life sciences, real assets - where the partners' networks create a specific edge.
Built through proprietary access and active ownership.
A concentrated portfolio of sports, entertainment, and life sciences investments.
Founder-led. Operator-aware.
We invest as owners. The partners have built clubs, constructed stadiums, and structured capital across sport, real estate, and the public markets.
Begin a conversation.
We work with a select group of sophisticated investors and partners. For general inquiries, reach the firm directly below. Fund materials are made available only to verified, eligible investors through a secure portal.
La Jolla, California
Investor access
Verified investors can request access to private fund materials through the secure portal.
Investor Access