The nascent Major League Volleyball (MLV) competition has announced its latest, and perhaps highest-profile expansion franchise, with businessman Patrick Soon-Shiong launching a new Los Angeles-based organization.
South Africa-born businessman Soon-Shiong leads a group that has reportedly paid between $15 million and $20 million for the rights to the franchise, setting a strong eight-figure benchmark for franchise values relating to the burgeoning competition.
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Soon-Shiong, who owns the Los Angeles Times newspaper, has said that his news organization will feature dedicated reporting on the MLV team going forward.
He is joined in the ownership group by investor Ben Priest, who will serve as the team's governor and managing partner (he was the managing partner of the Omaha Supernovas franchise in the past).
Speaking on the announcement, MLV commissioner Jaime Weston said: “Adding Los Angeles is an important step in the growth of Major League Volleyball and our long-term vision for the sport in the United States.
"LA has all the ingredients to become one of the premier professional volleyball markets in the world, including a strong volleyball community, deep ties to sports and entertainment, and fans who embrace live events and big moments. With global attention on Los Angeles and volleyball continuing to grow nationwide, we see a tremendous opportunity to build something meaningful here and introduce more fans to professional volleyball."
Ben Priest added: “Los Angeles gives us the opportunity to build on the momentum of the first three MLV seasons in a market that naturally brings together sports, media, entertainment, and culture.”
This is the fourth expansion franchise announced ahead of the 2027 MLV campaign, with other expansions in Northern California (covering San Jose, San Francisco, and Sacramento), Washington DC, and Minnesota also confirmed.
The nascent competition formed out of the merger with the former Pro Volleyball Federation in August 2025, and recently completed its third campaign, featuring eight franchises.
Seven of those eight will return in 2027, with the San Diego Mojo set to drop out, meaning that the LA franchise will be the competition’s 11th team.
MLV has secured wide-ranging investment from prominent figures across sports and entertainment, including Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadivé, Omaha Supernovas founder Danny White, artist Jason Derulo, MLV Northern California owner Kerri Walsh Jennings, and venture capitalist Theresia Gouw, who has stakes in the Buffalo Bills, Bay FC, and MLV’s Northern California franchise.
Earlier this year, MLV also secured a new partnership with LTN, the global broadcast media technology solutions provider, to produce and distribute live broadcasts ahead of the 2026 season.
Under the deal, up to 50 MLV games will be broadcast across 2026, a record for the competition, with LTN stepping in to provide a range of broadcast enhancement products, including multi-camera setup, remote broadcast transmission, and centralized broadcast production from its Kansas City facility.
