Kraft rebukes involvement in private equity fund
UNIVERSITY PARK (WTAJ) — Sports agency network Elevate said they have partnered with Penn State and UCLA as the company introduces a $500 million private equity fund for college athletics, but both schools have rebuked the report.
Penn State athletics director Pat Kraft released a statement saying 'Elevate serves as our partner in ticketing strategy and operations. To clarify, our relationship is strictly limited to these services, and we have no affiliation or involvement with any private equity firm or fund.' UCLA released a similar statement linking the Bruins to the company for ticketing purposes only.
Elevate's College Investment Initiative is a private equity (PE) fund funded primarily by Velocity Capital Management and the Texas Permanent School Fund. PE is widely viewed as the next frontier in college athletics as schools look to offset costs by the changing landscape of the sports, and the new revenue sharing model set up by last week's groundbreaking House Settlement deal.
Federal judge approves $2.8B settlement, paving way for US colleges to pay athletes millions
The nearly $3 billion settlement provides back pay benefits, sets up NIL oversight and allows schools to share more than $20 million in revenue with athletes. That number is close to 10% of what the highest earning schools make, but also more than some of the lowest schools make in a year, like Louisiana-Monroe, who make $19 million according to a 2024 report by USA Today.
But many questions on how this would all work out remain. College football teams are not businesses and can't be bought and sold like stocks and companies, though some suggest PE could purchase teams, portions of teams, or assets like merchandise or media rights.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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UNIVERSITY PARK (WTAJ) — Sports agency network Elevate said they have partnered with Penn State and UCLA as the company introduces a $500 million private equity fund for college athletics, but both schools have rebuked the report. Penn State athletics director Pat Kraft released a statement saying 'Elevate serves as our partner in ticketing strategy and operations. To clarify, our relationship is strictly limited to these services, and we have no affiliation or involvement with any private equity firm or fund.' UCLA released a similar statement linking the Bruins to the company for ticketing purposes only. Elevate's College Investment Initiative is a private equity (PE) fund funded primarily by Velocity Capital Management and the Texas Permanent School Fund. PE is widely viewed as the next frontier in college athletics as schools look to offset costs by the changing landscape of the sports, and the new revenue sharing model set up by last week's groundbreaking House Settlement deal. Federal judge approves $2.8B settlement, paving way for US colleges to pay athletes millions The nearly $3 billion settlement provides back pay benefits, sets up NIL oversight and allows schools to share more than $20 million in revenue with athletes. That number is close to 10% of what the highest earning schools make, but also more than some of the lowest schools make in a year, like Louisiana-Monroe, who make $19 million according to a 2024 report by USA Today. But many questions on how this would all work out remain. College football teams are not businesses and can't be bought and sold like stocks and companies, though some suggest PE could purchase teams, portions of teams, or assets like merchandise or media rights. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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