MSG Sports board approves plan to split Knicks, Rangers into separate companies
A general view of Madison Square Garden during a game between the Knicks and Phoenix Suns on Jan. 2, 2023. Credit: Getty Images/Mike Stobe
MSG Sports on Wednesday announced its board of directors had approved a plan to spin off the Knicks and Rangers into separate companies. The transaction is expected to be finalized on Oct. 26.
The defending NBA champion Knicks and the NHL’s Rangers will continue to be run by James Dolan, according to a news release issued by MSG Sports. Dolan will serve as executive chairman and chief executive officer of the separate companies, which will be called MSG Knickerbockers Corp. and MSG Rangers Corp.
MSG Knickerbockers Corp. will consist of the Knicks and the Westchester Knicks of the NBA’s G League. MSG Rangers Corp. will include the Rangers, the Hartford Wolf Pack of the AHL and the MSG Training Center, the Tarrytown facility where both the Knicks and Rangers practice.
“With our board’s approval we are now one step closer to our goal of separating our Knicks and Rangers businesses into two distinct public companies,” Dolan said in a statement. “Both teams have storied histories and large and passionate fan bases, and we believe each company will be well-positioned to generate long-term value for shareholders.”
MSG Sports announced in February that it planned to explore the spinoff “to further create value for our shareholders by separating our two professional sports franchises into distinct companies,” according to a statement released at that time. “We believe this proposed transaction would provide each company with enhanced strategic flexibility, its own defined business focus, and clear characteristics for investors.”
In 2025, Forbes ranked the Knicks as the third-most valuable team in the NBA at $9.75 billion. The Rangers were ranked second in the NHL at $4 billion.
In July, Dolan announced that he was turning over day-to-day operations of the Rangers to his son, Quentin, who was introduced as the Rangers’ president, chief operating officer and alternate governor.
Anthony Rieber covers sports media and business and professional sports (you know, games and trades and things). He has worked at Newsday since Aug. 31, 1998, and has been in his current position since Jan. 1, 2026.
