Former New York mayor Michael Bloomberg has joined a contentious battle for control of the Minnesota Timberwolves, as he looks to extend his interests in sports ownership and lend deep-pocketed support to a bid for the basketball franchise.
Bloomberg was joining a bid from two Wolves minority owners — ecommerce entrepreneur Marc Lore and retired baseball star Alex Rodriguez, a spokesman for the two said. Lore and Rodriguez are locked in a dispute with Wolves owner Glen Taylor over control of the National Basketball Association team and its sister franchise Minnesota Lynx which plays in the Women’s National Basketball Association, for which they signed a 2021 contract to buy for $1.5bn.
The exact size of Bloomberg’s share could not immediately be determined. Earlier this year, he was part of a group led by The Carlyle Group founder David Rubenstein to acquire baseball’s Baltimore Orioles for $1.73bn.