Investment champion. Michael Jordan’s fortune has reached $1.65 billion.

Basketball legend Michael Jordan never fails to impress. As it turns out, the athlete has talent not only for playing ball, but also for being an entrepreneur. He won six league titles with the Chicago Bulls. When he took over the helm of the Charlotte Hornets he has not yet won anything. What’s more, the team is likely to leave the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. A loss in 5 of 7 games openly suggests that.

Should the team be eliminated from the competition, it would turn out to be the 11th time the team has missed the playoffs, with 14 seasons to go. The funny thing is that Jordan is the owner of a controlling stake in the team. He acquired it back in 2010. Given the team’s performance, many joked about the former athlete. His entrepreneurial flair was severely compromised by his basketball talent.

Improving Jordan’s financial situation at the expense of the team

Although the Hornets were underperforming, the club proved to be a good investment. In 2006, Jordan became a minority shareholder of the team. In 2010, he transfers $175m for it. In addition, the athlete then revealed that he intended to pay tens of millions of dollars for future operating expenses.

In February of that year, the team was already valued at about 1.05 billion dollars, according to Forbes magazine. The amount owed was about $150 million. At the same time Michael owned almost 90% of the Charlotte Hornets club. It would seem impossible, but not when it comes to Michael Jordan.

The period was marked by the incredible success of Jordan Brand, the result of a collaboration with the sports giant Nike. Within a month, the basketball player’s fortune had risen to 1.65 billion dollars. This brings Jordan to 1477th place in the ranking of the richest people in the world. He managed to surpass 90 positions in 1 year. If we restrict ourselves to just the richest people in the United States, Michael then secured the 455th place.

How the Charlotte Hornets added millions of dollars to Michael

In the period under study, the team’s value added around 35%. It was fortunate in that clubs whose revenues were fairly low were winning thanks to a growing revenue stream from channels that broadcast games as well as international networks. This is how franchises manage to add substantially to their value, while not even reaching significant heights in the rankings.

Interestingly enough, the Hornets still remain at the bottom of the financial hierarchy. Only the Memphis Grizzlies and New Orleans Pelicans are below them. But another thing has played into their hands – the support of Jordan’s fans. Since Michael changed his name from the Bobcats to the Hornets, the fan base has expanded immensely in a matter of minutes.

Thanks to Jordan’s dominance, the team’s games became some of the most watched. When the original name was changed back, however, the number of fans dwindled. But this did not worsen Michael’s financial situation. He is still one of the richest athletes in the world.