Billie Jean King after 41 years is ceding control of Mylan World TeamTennis, selling her majority stake to two team owners -- Mark Ein, who will have control, and Fred Luddy. King in turn will buy out a handful of smaller investors, including the USTA. Ein, who owns the Washington Kastles, plans to add four expansion teams in ‘18 to the current six-team league and expand further in later years. “She is looking basically for a succession plan,” Ein said. “She is looking for the next generation to come in.” Ein declined to comment on terms of the deal. “People always want to see franchise values to go up, and that will be a core metric we manage to,” he said. King will retain a stake in the league through her ownership of the Philadelphia Freedoms. WTT CEO Ilana Kloss will remain in that role in ‘17. After this season, “we are all going to sort it out,” said Ein of the leadership position (Daniel Kaplan, Staff Writer).
CHANGING OF THE GUARD: King during a press conference said the transition was "perfect." She added that she and Ein have "discussed a potential change in ownership for six years." In DC, Andy Medici noted LionTree Partners will "provide additional capital, investing in the league alongside Ein and Luddy." Ein said that the league will "eventually shoot for 16 teams in the next few years." He even suggested the "possibility of a minor league if it goes well." He has "no plans to move" the league HQ from N.Y. Ein said that right now the "league is profitable," but the ultimate goal will be to "shift from short-term profitability to building up the value of the individual teams" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 3/13). King said, "I will definitely try to help the league with strategy and helping bring in new ownership or whatever Mark needs. ... I’m really excited, totally excited, because I want to make sure it continues after I’m gone." Ein said that for now, there are "no plans to expand the window for the WTT season," which will run from July 16 to Aug. 5 this year. But he "expressed confidence about attracting new owners who share his enthusiasm, in part because he sees the WTT as a bargain." In N.Y., Christopher Clarey notes the WTT remains one of the "rare opportunities in pro sports for men and women to play on the same team" (N.Y. TIMES, 3/14).
