Mark L. Attanasio has been running the Milwaukee Brewers since January 2005, when he closed a deal to buy the club from the Selig family for $223 million. A lawyer and financier born in the Bronx, Attanasio came to baseball through investment markets — not through a family industrial empire. What makes his situation stand out: his personal net worth sits at roughly $1.9 billion, almost exactly what Forbes values his team at today. That makes him one of the most financially tight owners among all 30 MLB clubs.
Ownership at a Glance
- Principal Owner: Mark L. Attanasio
- Ownership Group: Investor group led by Attanasio, who serves as principal owner, chairman of the board, and MLB control person since 2005
- Current Group in Place Since: 2004
- Purchase Price: $223 million
- Latest Forbes Valuation: $1.9 billion
- Owner’s Net Worth: $1.9 billion
- Appreciation Since Purchase: 8.5x the original price
Who Is Mark Attanasio?
Attanasio was born on September 29, 1957, in the Bronx, New York — the great-grandson of Italian immigrants from Positano. He graduated high school in Tenafly, New Jersey in 1975, studied at Brown University, and earned his law degree from Columbia Law School in 1982. His money comes from finance: in 1991 he co-founded Crescent Capital Group, a Los Angeles-based credit and investment firm, which was acquired by Trust Company of the West in 1995. In 2001 he joined the board of Global Crossing, resigning shortly after the company filed for bankruptcy in January 2002.
He is married to Deborah Kaplan and has two children. His brother Paul is a television writer and his niece Annabelle is an actress.
In September 2004, Attanasio negotiated the purchase of the Brewers from the family of then-MLB Commissioner Bud Selig. The league approved the transaction in January 2005.
How He Got the Team
The franchise’s history in Milwaukee traces back to 1970, when a group led by Bud Selig rescued the bankrupt Seattle Pilots and relocated them to Wisconsin. The Selig family kept the club for more than three decades before Attanasio’s purchase closed that chapter — passing the torch to a New York investor with deep financial markets experience.
- 1970: Bud Selig’s group buys the bankrupt Seattle Pilots and moves them to Milwaukee
- 2004–2005: Mark Attanasio negotiates and closes the purchase from the Selig family for $223 million
What Else Does Attanasio Own?
Beyond the Brewers, Attanasio controls Crescent Capital Group in Los Angeles and since October 2024 has been the majority shareholder of Norwich City FC in England, holding an 85% stake — giving him professional sports teams in two countries. He is also a co-owner of the Milwaukee Admirals (AHL) and in 2026 joined the investor group behind Athletes Unlimited Softball League.
Inside the Brewers organization, he has brought in notable minority partners: NBA superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks, and Ralph and Shelly Stayer, owners of Johnsonville LLC — the sausage brand that sponsors the team. That deal closed on December 12, 2023. The club’s sustainability model leans heavily on international amateur signings, with the Brewers’ Caribbean academy in the Dominican Republic and Venezuela serving as a core pillar.
Where Can You Watch the Games?
In 2026, the Brewers faced a major local broadcast shakeup: they parted ways with Main Street Sports Group, owner of FanDuel Sports Network Wisconsin, which is going through liquidation after losing several MLB teams. MLB Local Media now produces and distributes all 162 games. The direct-to-consumer product is Brewers.TV, available within the local market (Wisconsin, Iowa, parts of Minnesota, Illinois, and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula) for around $19.99/month or $99.99/season. A selection of games also airs on free TV via Fox6 Milwaukee.
Attanasio has said publicly that the RSN loss amounts to roughly $20 million per year in revenue, since MLB’s new payment structure pays approximately half of what the old regional sports network deals provided.
Facts Worth Talking About
- He bought the team from the family of the sitting MLB Commissioner — Bud Selig, whose group had originally rescued the Seattle Pilots from bankruptcy in 1970.
- His personal fortune ($1.9B) is nearly identical to his team’s Forbes valuation ($1.9B), making him one of the most financially stretched owners in the league compared to peers like the Ricketts family ($8.4B) or Arte Moreno ($4.9B).
- Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Bucks’ two-time MVP, is a minority partner in the Brewers.
- In May 2026, Attanasio publicly stated he has no plans to sell equity to private capital — going against the wave of private equity entering MLB.
- He owns 85% of Norwich City FC in England since October 2024, running professional sports franchises on two continents.
- In December 2023, he brought in the owners of Johnsonville — the sausage company that sponsors the team — as minority partners to strengthen the books of a small-market club.
- The RSN loss in 2026 cost the club an estimated $20 million annually, tightening the offseason spending budget.
- His boldest baseball bet: an 8-year, $82 million extension for Venezuelan outfielder Jackson Chourio before Chourio had played a single day in the major leagues — the largest contract ever given to a player with zero MLB service time.
Where He Ranks Among the 30 Owners
- By franchise value: #21 of 30
- By purchase price: #17 of 27
- By owner’s personal net worth: #18 of 21
- By years running the club: #15 of 30
Purchase prices are nominal and not adjusted for inflation — comparing a decades-old sale price to today’s valuation overstates the real gain.
Attanasio ranks 21st out of 30 by franchise value, but his case is genuinely unusual: he’s been in charge for 22 years, and the team is worth 8.5 times what he paid in 2004. In May 2026 he made clear, publicly, that private equity is not part of his plan — a notable stance as the rest of the league opens its doors to outside funds.
