Australia’s richest people in talks with Basketball Australia to salvage the Women’s National Basketball League
The WNBL competition is on a precipice but several of Australia’s millionaires are being mooted as saviours for the league, writes MICHAEL RANDALL and MATT LOGUE.
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In what looms as a massive boost for the WNBL, some of Australia’s richest businesspeople, worth more than $2 billion combined, could rescue the struggling league.
Former Hawthorn Football Club president and Melbourne Victory founder Geoff Lord has emerged as a surprise investor in the country’s oldest professional women’s sporting league.
Billionaire property developer Larry Kestelman, the NBL’s saviour, and Tesla Australia boss Robyn Denholm are also involved in talks with Basketball Australia.
Sources said there could be more than one saviour, with a potential team-up mooted, although it’s unclear which parties would be willing to work together on the league.
Lord, said to be worth in excess of $500 million, told Code Sports he was interested in a stake in the league through his powerhouse multinational Belgravia Group.
“Yes, we are in talks,” Lord confirmed to Code Sports on Wednesday.
“It doesn’t mean an outcome, yet, but we are in talks.
“We’d do it with whoever it took to get it done.
“I’m just trying to help. We’ll see what happens.”
Lord has, for some months, been part of a consortium that will purchase the Melbourne Boomers’ licence and move the club to Geelong.
But he has grander plans for the league.
As BA looks to lock in rich backers for the WNBL, EagleHawk Capital has been engaging potential investors on its behalf.
Jayco magnate Gerry Ryan, owner of Southside Flyers, told Code Sports last week he was willing to invest in the WNBL but was yet to be approached. Former Illawarra Hawks president and millionaire clothing exporter Dorry Kordahi has also expressed interest.
BA boss Matt Scriven was contacted for comment.
Game over for Boomers as BA relents on Geelong bid
The WNBL’s oldest club has bounced its last ball with Basketball Australia set to approve Melbourne Boomers’ move to Geelong.
Following Code Sports’ recent reports of growing frustration at a protracted process, multiple sources confirmed BA’s management team, led by chief executive Matt Scriven, has notified all clubs of its intent to recommend the Boomers’ licence be transferred to a high-powered consortium that includes Geelong United Basketball Association.
The Boomers will cease to exist in their current form and the new team will enter the league from the 2024-25 season. It will be branded Geelong United and play in the navy blue and white club colours, similar to the AFL Cats.
WNBL clubs were given until Tuesday to comment on the proposal before the BA board decides on the recommendation, as it races the clock to meet a May 10 deadline for its delayed free agency and accompanying collective bargaining agreement negotiations.
The transfer plan puts to an end to a months long saga where several potential buyers — including the NBL’s Melbourne United and a group involving former Illawarra Hawks president Dorry Kordahi — kicked the tyres on the club, founded in 1984 as Bulleen and, in 2013, renamed Melbourne.
BA had hoped to keep the Boomers in the Victorian capital, amid concerns of its impact on the league’s broadcast deal and its impending part-privatisation. Boomers ownership tried several avenues to find a local buyer but it became clear Geelong had the model, population growth and financial backing to set it up for sustained success.
Powerhouse Belgravia Group and boss Geoff Lord — former Hawthorn Football Club president and Melbourne Victory founder — is part of the consortium that will take control of the Boomers’ licence, with Geelong United Basketball Association helmed by former Melbourne Demons AFL coach and Geelong Cat Mark Neeld.
The new club will move quickly. It’s understood to already have agreements in place with some players and will initially compete out of the 2000-seat Geelong Arena in North Geelong. The move into elite-tier sport strengthens the region’s case for a planned new 5000-plus-seat stadium at Waurn Ponds, with a long-term vision for an NBL club.
It comes as adviser EagleHawk Capital begins its process of engaging and vetting potential investors in the league, with the NBL’s Larry Kestelman, Tesla Australia boss Robyn Denholm and Jayco founder Gerry Ryan among those with interest.
Basketball Australia has been contacted for comment.
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