“Seven wins, four draws, no losses,” he said. The Athletic prior to the team’s 1-0 NWSL quarterfinal victory over the San Diego Wave. “In the office they joke: ‘Is Alex wearing his red shirt?’”
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“What keeps me up at night is whether he’ll show up with it on,” laughs Bhathal Merage. “We hope Montclair never stops making those polos. And frankly, Alex, you should be sponsored by Moncler.”
He has his own team for game day. “I have a bracelet that has spikes on one side and smooth on the other,” he says. “On game days, I always put on my prickly side for good luck.”
On Sunday, the Bhathals’ lucky charms were on display. They beat the Wave at home to clinch a spot in the semifinals against the Washington Spirit on Saturday, a well-deserved reward after a whirlwind season. It was a moment worthy of celebration.
Lisa Bhathal Merage and her brother Alex, through their investment vehicle RAJ Sports, entered the Portland sports scene in late 2023 with the $63 million purchase of the NWSL’s Thorns from Merritt Paulson. Paulson’s decision to sell came just two months after the club fired two top executives implicated in the league’s systemic abuse scandal involving the club’s former head coach, Paul Riley.
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Initially, the brothers cast a wide net, exploring investments in Major League Soccer, expansion franchises and more. But a visit to Providence Park sealed his decision. What started as due diligence quickly turned into conviction.
It was Bhathal Merage who first experienced the passion of the Rose City Riveters. Took her husband and son to a Thorns game in 2023.
“It was magical,” he recalled. “You can’t create that atmosphere. The passion at Providence Park is authentic. You feel it in your bones.”
At the time of the sale, the club was in a delicate state. The players were dissatisfied and the fans protested week after week. But the Bhathals saw what Paulson had built: the most successful team in NWSL history, a perennial contender and a fan base that fills a stadium week after week. “You can’t buy fandom,” Bhathal Merage said. “You can create a new team from scratch, but you can’t create this.”
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This year is their ninth consecutive playoff appearance, but getting here feels like a miracle.
Portland entered 2025 with a roster turnover unlike any other in the club’s history, including the retirements of Christine Sinclair and Becky Sauerbrunn, who left a void of leadership and experience. Star forward Sophia Wilson (formerly Smith) missed the year on maternity leave, while Morgan Weaver, Marie Muller and Nicole Payne were sidelined before kick-off with long-term injuries. Midseason blows followed, when rookie Caiya Hanks and newcomer Julie Dufour suffered ACL tears, which only deepened the challenge. Still, coach Rob Gale rebuilt around a younger core, with Olivia Moultrie, Deyna Castellanos, Jessie Fleming and captain Sam Coffey keeping Portland’s championship hopes alive.
The Bhathals knew it wouldn’t be easy, but they have adopted a determined attitude toward ownership.
“One thing we’ve learned from our parents’ involvement in sports is that we don’t consider ourselves owners,” Bhathal Merage said. “We consider ourselves stewards of a beloved community asset.”
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In Portland, where the Thorns are as much an institution as a sports club, management comes with high expectations and responsibility.
“The top-down mentality of how we create the culture in the organization. As an organization, we value innovation and forward thinking. We like to win. We strive for excellence,” he said. “One thing our parents always taught us is to leave your ego at the door. It’s not about you, it’s about everything else.”
His love of sports began early, long before balance sheets and boardrooms. His mother, Martha Bhathal, was a multi-sport athlete who played golf at UCLA, and his childhood was filled with packed stadiums: the Los Angeles Rams, Lakers and Angels. These moments set the tone for a family culture based on competition, loyalty and presence.
His father, Raj Bhathal, helped build a diversified portfolio in real estate, private equity and sports. He had already been involved in NBA ownership for more than a decade, serving as the largest minority owner in the Sacramento Kings group and as alternate governor to Vivek Ranadive, the majority owner. The brothers grew up watching him take the long view.
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“We learned there are no shortcuts,” Alex Bhathal said.
“We understand the long-term nature of being involved in the world of sports and take a long-term approach to establishing a foundation that can be built over time. Great companies are built brick by brick.”
Redoubling their bet on Portland, in 2024, they also purchased the WNBA franchise, Portland Fire, for $125 million.
Despite living in California, Lisa and Alex are in Portland for almost every home game. They arrive early (an hour before kickoff) to watch warmups, greet players, and interact with their staff.
“Women’s sports require more work,” says Bhathal Merage. “You can’t call him on the phone.”
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Your suite is not a corporate space; It’s familiar. “Our families are there, but so are our staff, our general manager, our president. They are an extension of our family.”
The largest project they have taken on since taking over Thorns is the state-of-the-art dual-sport performance center, opening next season, which has expanded beyond its original 63,000 square feet and will be the only professional women’s dual-sport facility in the world. Each team will have its own entrance, with two full-size soccer fields and two basketball courts for the WNBA.
The teams will share two key areas: an elite training core, with separate gym and recovery spaces, and a shared dining room designed to foster connection, culture and community between both teams.
One of the center’s main goals is to improve women’s health, emphasizing injury prevention and contributing to much-needed research in the care of female athletes. The center is designed from a female perspective, featuring recovery rooms, a space for mothers, a beauty studio, a nutrition laboratory and details such as tiles and finishes chosen by the players. That last part is crucial. Wilson suggested a mother’s chair for the family area, similar to the one she has at home.
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The project will cost more than $150 million and is privately financed by the Bhathals.
Sports teams are expensive operations, but the benefits have been rapid. Since taking over, they have seen sponsorship revenue increase by 300 per cent. Partnering with Legends Global, the leading entertainment and venue management company, has strengthened everything from hospitality to partnership strategy. Earlier this year, they landed a multi-year deal with home security company Ring as a front-of-jersey sponsor, the most lucrative jersey partnership in league history, according to the team.
However, not everything is easy. Beyond the Thorns’ playoff push and hopes of adding new hardware, an intriguing offseason lies ahead.
Following last year’s roster overhaul, the club has locked down Moultrie until 2029. The big question now is whether star forwards Wilson, still on maternity leave, and Weaver, recovering from knee surgery, will return next season.
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For now, the mood around the Thorns is clear: cautious optimism and plenty of belief that their best days are yet to come.
“We’ve done a lot of work to try to develop better processes in terms of recruiting, philosophy and principles,” said Jeff Agoos, who joined the team in January as president and general manager of football operations.
“In sports, you look week to week, if we win on Saturday, but we also look at what the next 10 years are going to look like. Our goal as an organization is to be a mid-market unicorn with a billion-dollar valuation.”
Alex Bhathal, deputy governor, is convinced that growth is coming, both for the Thorns and the league. “But we’re in the early innings,” he said.
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“You can spend a lot of money on sports, and you can waste a lot of money on sports,” Bhathal said, “but you can also be very specific when you make significant investments that will then reap long-term rewards from the success of the franchise.”
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
Portland Thorns, NWSL, Sports Business, Women’s Soccer
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