US Soccer announced Tuesday that it has accepted a $30 million gift from Washington Spirit owner Michele Kang, marking the largest philanthropic investment in women’s and girls’ soccer in the federation’s history.
Kang, along with U.S. Soccer Federation President Cindy Parlow Cone, joined CBS Mornings to break the news of her investment, and also stopped by CBS Sports Golazo Network’s Morning Footy to discuss the donation. Her investment will be spread over a period of five years. Funds from her gift will boost US Soccer’s efforts to recruit and develop young players and expand opportunities for women pursuing careers as coaches, referees and coaching staff.
“Over the last few years we have made incredible progress in developing the professional level – the teams, the purpose-built, dedicated women’s stadiums, dedicated training centres,” she said on Morning Footy of the NWSL. “The number of viewers is doubling, the number of visitors is doubling and tripling, but to maintain this momentum we must now invest in the very early phase of this ecosystem, namely the youth. They are the stars of the future and they are the ones who are going to make it. This product is incredibly exciting and thrilling for our fans and the talent we need to identify from a very young age. We need to follow it, we need to develop, we need to mentor and for that to happen, we need coaches. We need talented and well-trained coaches. We need referees to monitor the matches and so on, and without those resources this sport cannot continue.”
Kang’s gift will enable US Soccer to scale its talent identification tools at the youth level, including doubling the number of camps from six to 12 per year per age group. US Soccer will also be able to increase the capacity of its digital talent identification platform, which will now have access to 100,000 youth players and see twelve times as many players in the pipeline.
The investment will also provide increased education and mentorship resources for 10,000 women in coaching, refereeing and technical staff roles.
Kang, the founder of medical technology company Cognosante, is the first woman of color to be the majority owner of an NWSL team. She entered the women’s soccer scene when she acquired a 35% stake in the NWSL’s Washington Spirit in December 2020, her first venture as a professional sports team owner. She became the team’s majority owner in March 2022 after winning a power struggle with former controlling owner Steve Baldwin, who was forced out after it was revealed he condoned a toxic and abusive workplace.
Kang won the support of the players throughout the months-long saga and when she became the majority shareholder, she pledged not only to ensure safe working conditions but also to invest significantly in the team. The Spirit have reached the NWSL Championship twice since Kang joined the ownership group, winning in 2021 and playing for their second title against the Orlando Pride on Saturday (8 p.m. ET, CBS, Biggest+).
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In recent years, Kang has expanded her portfolio and become one of the first female sports moguls. She reached an agreement in May 2023 to become the majority shareholder of Olympique Lyonnais Feminin, the record eight-time UEFA Women’s Champions League champions. In December 2023, she bought London City Lionesses, the city’s only independent women’s club in the top two tiers of English football. Each club falls under the umbrella of Kynisca Sports International, which also includes the Kynisca Innovation Hub (KIH), which was launched in August 2024. The KIH represents Kang’s $50 million investment in expanding sports science resources for female athletes, as only 6% of research on the topic focuses on women.
Kang’s portfolio also includes investments in media company Just Women’s Sports, women’s athletic footwear company IDA Sports, a $4 million gift to the U.S. women’s rugby team and a stake in MLB’s Baltimore Orioles.
US Soccer recently began turning to wealthy donors to fund various projects, including the recent appointment of national team coach Mauricio Pochettino. According to athleticsan American soccer donor reached out to hedge fund manager and billionaire Ken Griffin to help in their quest to hire the high-profile coach. Griffin’s gift allowed US Soccer to make Pochettino the federation’s highest-paid coach ever, reportedly earning $6 million a year for his services.
However, Kang’s investment is intended to keep the women’s national team competitive in the coming years. Increased investment around the world has challenged the USWNT’s old label as the gold standard for women’s football, although their recent gold medal at the Olympics under new head coach Emma Hayes has restored confidence in the program. However, an injection of money into the youth development structure could provide a competitive advantage for US Soccer as they strive to remain the best of the best in women’s soccer.