Following the Possible Closing of a Lightning Sale That Would Value the NHL Franchise at $2 Billion, How Much Are the Maple Leafs Worth in 2024?

It should be worth noting that no sale has closed yet. But Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported last week citing multiple sources that Tampa Bay Lightning owner Jeff Vinik was looking to expand the current ownership by divesting a portion of the team that would value the Florida franchise at $2 billion.

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For perspective that more than doubles the $950 million that the Ottawa Senators close for when they were sold to Michael Andlauer to purchase the Canadian franchise back in September of 2023 and the $1 billion that the Arizona Coyotes were sold for to Utah's Ryan Smith (an additional $200 million was attached as a relocation fee) earlier this year.

The $2 billion mark is also a 1.6X markup of sports business site Sportico's most recent valuation of the Lightning of $1.25 billion. That's an important multiplier which will get to in a moment.

The Toronto Maple Leafs are just one of several sports companies under the ownership group of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (MLSE) that includes Scotiabank Arena, the Toronto Raptors (NBA), Toronto FC (MLS), and Toronto Argonauts (CFL) among many other subsidiaries. Larry Tanenbaum, a 25 percent owner of MLSE, recently divested 20 percent of his stake in the company to OMERS for $400 million, which gave the pension company an indirect stake in MLSE valued at $8 billion (U.S). If the Lightning sale goes through, that would possibly reflect a new valuation of the Maple Leafs. If it follows the same multiplier as Tampa, that could be $4.24 billion.

Related: Maple Leafs' Parent Company MLSE Now Worth $8 Billion US After OMERS Purchases 5% Indirect State from Larry Tanenbaum's Kilmer Sports

That number could also significantly bump the MLSE valuation to north of $10 billion (USD) by the end of the year.

Sportsnet reported that it's believed that telecom companies Bell and Rogers, which each own a 37.5 percent stake in MLSE, have a clause they could enact by 2026 to buy out Tanenbaum's remaining stake. By that point, the price could balloon higher if not enacted sooner.

Of course, the sale in Tampa hasn't closed just yet. But once it does, the valuations across the NHL will be set to skyrocket and no doubt the Leafs will grow in lockstep with it.

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