The Paul Rabil-founded upstart Premier Lacrosse League has received backing from Alibaba billionaire and Brooklyn Nets investor Joe Tsai as part a Series A funding round.
The financing round was additionally led by Brett Jefferson of Hildene Capital Management and return investor The Raine Group. The capital will be used to fund future league operations, such as team and player-focused original programming and executive team expansion.
“We are excited to build upon an investment group that is aligned with our vision of bringing the sport of lacrosse into the mainstream and delivering a world-class product for our fans,” said PLL co-founder and CEO Michael Rabil, the brother of Paul Rabil and a former Dartmouth football player.
Through his investor firm, J Tsai Sports, Tsai brings a wealth of knowledge in sports, particularly with the NBA, via investments in the Nets and WNBA team New York Liberty. He is also familiar with lacrosse via his ownership of the San Diego Seals National Lacrosse League franchise. The 14-week PLL, which kicks off Jun. 1, has been designed to run opposite of the NLL to avoid overlap.
“Paul Rabil has done so much for lacrosse. From youth to college, he has inspired a generation of players to strive for the best and grow the sport,” said Tsai. “The PLL will take professional lacrosse to the next level, and J Tsai Sports is proud to support the vision of its founders and players.”
The PLL is attempting to mainstream professional lacrosse by broadcasting all games with NBC Sports Group, and hosting games with world-class players in state-of-the-art venues.
NBC Sports also announced this week that it will increase the league’s presence on its NBC flagship network to three games, instead of the previously dedicated two programming windows. The broadcaster’s head of programming, Jon Miller, said the move reflects NBC’s “excitement and confidence” in the six-team PLL. A total of 19 live games will be aired this summer across the NBC Sports family of networks.