The team, whose ownership group is led by investor Josh Harris, said it had formed a 50-50 joint venture with Comcast to replace its arena in the South Philadelphia stadium district by 2031. Comcast will also take a minority stake in the team and work together on the WNBA bid, the parties said in a joint statement Monday.

The city had approved a plan for a new arena in a struggling part of downtown. But on Monday, the Sixers said a new venue would be built near their current one instead.