Washington Spirit owner Michele Kang has made a $30 million donation to U.S. Soccer, the largest gift in federation history designated for girls and women’s soccer.
The gift is largely focused on youth development, where the U.S. women have fallen off from their historic dominance in recent years. In September, Team USA lost to North Korea in the semifinals of the Under-20 World Cup and eventually took home bronze on a game-winning goal. The team hasn’t won the tournament since 2012. At the Under-17 World Cup earlier this month, the Americans got bronze again, the team’s first top-four finish since finishing second in 2008. Kang’s investment, spread out over a five-year period, will double the number of camps from six to 12 for every age group and improve its digital talent identifying platform.
The donation also aims to “fuel professional development for female players, coaches, and referees,” according to a U.S. Soccer statement, which said it aims to double the amount of female refs and coaches.
In July, Kang announced a $50 million donation to support female health initiatives in women’s sports and started her own sports science nonprofit to see it through. Shortly after, she gave $4 million to the U.S. women’s rugby sevens team in October after it won bronze at the Paris Olympics. She’s also invested in the media company Just Women’s Sports and IDA Sports, a company that makes women’s soccer cleats.
Kang first joined the Spirit with a 35% stake in 2020 and bought majority ownership of the team, which will face the Orlando Pride in the NWSL Championship on Saturday, for $35 million in 2022. Under her tenure as owner, the Spirit have moved permanently into the same practice and game-day facilities as the MLS’s D.C. United, and placed a large emphasis on women’s health.
Kang, 65, built her fortune off her health-care technology company, Cognosante, and her venture capital firm, Cognosante Ventures. She purchased the European women’s teams Olympique Lyonnais and London City Lionesses shortly after buying the Spirit, and is part of the new Baltimore Orioles ownership group that bought the team in January.
Kang gives the U.S. women their own Ken Griffin. The hedge fund billionaire has given U.S. Soccer millions and most recently bankrolled a large part of the hire of Mauricio Pochettino to be the national squad’s next manager, and helped dramatically increase the position’s salary. ESPN reported he will make $6 million annually, which is far higher than the roughly $2.2 million yearly salary his predecessor Gregg Berhalter made in 2022. Griffin has also contributed $8 million in recent years to the U.S. Soccer Foundation.
Perhaps part of Kang’s contribution to coaching will start at the national level. While new head coach Emma Hayes earns more than three times what Vlatko Andonovski made before her, she still brings home just $1.6 million per season.
“I believe a gift like this will change the trajectory of the sport,” Hayes said Tuesday.
This is the most significant investment in women’s soccer at the national level since the team went to war against U.S. Soccer for equal pay. The entire team filed a gender discrimination lawsuit against the federation in March 2019 and reached an equal pay settlement in February 2022. The U.S. women’s national soccer team stumbled in the 2023 Women’s World Cup, making its earliest exit ever in the round of 16, but regrouped to win gold at the Paris Olympics.
