Just How Rich Is Elon Musk?

Sometimes wealth becomes so abstract that you need a creative comparison to wrap your head around it. Elon Musk's net worth is one of those cases. The billionaire ended 2025 as the world's richest person with a net worth of $619 billion, and Bloomberg now estimates his wealth at $640 billion after recent gains. He was the first human to ever cross the $600 billion threshold.

His wealth grew by $187 billion in 2025 alone, fueled by an 18.6% gain in Tesla Inc. (TSLA) stock and SpaceX's soaring valuation ahead of a potential IPO. And he's already up another $20.9 billion in 2026. Things could get even wilder if Tesla's new pay package awards him nearly $1 trillion in shares, or if SpaceX goes public at a rumored $1.5 trillion valuation.

So let's put this in sports terms, because everyone understands sports team valuations, right?

Musk Versus the Sports World

Here's the thought experiment: Musk could buy every single team in Major League Baseball, the National Basketball Association, the National Football League and the National Hockey League, and still have enough cash left over to buy a small country. Or at least a very nice island.

According to Forbes' current valuations, here's what the four major North American sports leagues are worth:

• MLB: 30 teams valued at $77.85 billion
• NBA: 30 teams valued at $160.975 billion
• NFL: 32 teams valued at $227.45 billion
• NHL: 32 teams valued at $70.55 billion
• Total: $536.825 billion

That means Musk could theoretically purchase all 124 teams across these leagues for $536.825 billion and still have $103.175 billion remaining. For context, that leftover amount is more than the net worth of most billionaires on the planet.

Would Musk Actually Buy a Sports Team?

Before Tesla shareholders panic, this is purely hypothetical. League rules prevent anyone from owning multiple teams in the same sport, and some leagues have restrictions on cross-league ownership too. So Musk isn't about to become the sports overlord of North America.

Plus, the majority of Musk's wealth isn't sitting in a checking account. It comes from his ownership stakes in Tesla and SpaceX. When Musk bought Twitter for $44 billion, he had to sell chunks of his Tesla stock to fund the deal. That sale created what analysts called the "Twitter overhang," which weighed on Tesla shares as investors worried about additional stock sales during the buyout process.

Musk hasn't expressed serious interest in owning a team in any of the four major leagues. He did once joke about buying Manchester United (MANU), the publicly traded English soccer club, but nothing came of it.

Other billionaires have taken the plunge. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has reportedly expressed interest in owning an NFL team someday. And plenty of people have become billionaires through sports team ownership as valuations have skyrocketed thanks to rising ticket prices, advertising revenue and massive media rights deals.

How Regular Investors Can Own Sports Teams

While Musk hasn't bought a sports team and President Donald Trump famously missed out on owning the Dallas Cowboys, regular investors actually have options to buy into publicly traded sports franchises.

The Atlanta Braves trade as Atlanta Braves Holdings (BATRA). Madison Square Garden Sports (MSGS) owns both the New York Knicks and New York Rangers. The entire Formula 1 racing league is publicly traded as Formula One Group (FWONA) and (FWONK).

Several other public companies hold stakes in professional sports teams too, including Rogers Communications (RCI), Ares Management Corp (ARES) and Blue Owl Capital (OWL).

Sports team values have climbed steadily over the years, making them attractive assets for investors who want exposure to the growing sports entertainment industry. And while buying an entire team might be reserved for billionaires, owning a piece through public markets is accessible to anyone with a brokerage account.

As for Musk? He'll probably stick to rockets and electric cars.