The $10bn LA Lakers sale proves sports have outgrown billionaires

The Lakers' record sale underscores how owning elite sports franchises is increasingly beyond even the wealthiest individuals, shifting power toward corporate consortiums

The sale of the Los Angeles Lakers is many things.

First of all, it is a record. The glitziest team in basketball is changing hands at a valuation of $10bn, the biggest ever for a sports franchise. Second, it is probably an excellent deal for the buyer, even at that astonishing valuation. And third, the shift in majority ownership from the Buss family to an investment group led by Los Angeles Dodgers owner Mark Walter, is something else: inevitable.