The intersection of venture capital and professional sports ownership has reached a new milestone as Collaborative Fund, a 15-year-old New York-based generalist firm managing roughly $1 billion, acquires an ownership stake in Major League Soccer (MLS) side D.C. United and its home venue, Audi Field. The transaction, which remains subject to final approval by Major League Soccer, places Collaborative Fund among a small but growing wave of venture-backed entities attempting to integrate startup capital with traditional sports franchises.
While the deal follows a trailblazing maneuver executed by Joshua Kushner’s Thrive Capital months prior, Collaborative Fund’s structural approach diverges significantly from both traditional private equity plays and dedicated permanent-capital vehicles. By treating a sports franchise not merely as a standalone asset to be bought and held, but rather as an active infrastructure play and physical distribution network for its early-stage portfolio, Collaborative Fund is pioneering a fresh thesis within the sports investment landscape.
A New Paradigm in Sports Ownership
Historically, capital infusions into professional sports have largely followed two predictable paths. The first is the realm of individual tech fortunes and multi-billionaire family offices. Prominent examples of this personal-wealth approach include Vinod Khosla and his family agreeing to purchase the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks for a record $9.6 billion, shortly after acquiring a stake in the San Francisco 49ers alongside OpenAI chairman Bret Taylor.
The second path involves institutional private equity firms deploying billions of dollars across multiple leagues and geographies. Firms such as Sixth Street (with holdings in the Boston Celtics, New England Patriots, and MLB’s San Francisco Giants), Ares Management (holding a piece of the Miami Dolphins and financing Chelsea’s stadium plans), RedBird Capital Partners (owner of AC Milan and a stakeholder in Fenway Sports Group), and Arctos Partners (with minority positions spanning the MLB, NFL, NBA, and European soccer) have institutionalized sports investing over the past decade.
Thrive Capital disrupted this duopoly by launching Thrive Eternal, a specialized vehicle explicitly designed to hold iconic cultural institutions and franchises for decades, funded by investors from its core venture and growth funds. Thrive kicked off this strategy with a stake in the San Francisco Giants before completing a historic outright purchase of the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers for $12.5 billion, featuring former Disney CEO and Thrive partner Bob Iger as a co-owner.
Collaborative Fund, however, is taking an entirely different route. Rather than setting up a standalone vehicle for trophy assets or relying on deep-pocketed individual fortunes, the firm is deploying capital directly out of its standard early-stage fund—the same pool of capital it uses to write seed and Series A checks for disruptive startups.
The Strategic Thesis: The Franchise as a Consumer Product
In a memo shared with industry stakeholders, Collaborative Fund founder and managing partner Craig Shapiro outlined the core philosophy driving the investment. Describing a sports franchise as “the ultimate consumer product,” Shapiro emphasized that D.C. United’s status as one of MLS’s original clubs grants the firm access to a deeply embedded fan base with decades of multi-generational loyalty.
Shapiro highlighted powerful macro tailwinds benefiting American soccer, including the legacy of past international tournaments, the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup hosted across North America, soaring youth participation rates in the United States, and the approach of the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. Furthermore, D.C. United’s ecosystem offers robust operational assets: direct ownership of Audi Field in Washington, D.C., a sophisticated talent-development pipeline through Loudoun County, Virginia (including Loudoun United FC), and rights connected to future expansion opportunities.
Rather than relying strictly on the financial appreciation of the team’s valuation—though that trajectory has been steep—Collaborative Fund’s primary thesis centers on what owning a stake in the stadium ecosystem makes possible for its startup portfolio.
Building a Living Showcase for Venture Portfolios
Speaking at an industry event in New York City, Shapiro detailed how Collaborative Fund intends to leverage Audi Field as a living laboratory and distribution channel for its venture-backed consumer and lifestyle brands.
As an early investor in high-growth companies such as fitness wearable manufacturer Whoop and functional beverage brand Olipop, Collaborative Fund envisions integrating these products directly into the stadium experience. This could involve deploying Whoop wearable fan-engagement activations across the stadium or ensuring Olipop beverages are prominently featured throughout match-day concessions.
At a time when rapid advancements in artificial intelligence and digital saturation are making daily life feel increasingly synthetic, Shapiro argues that physical, live experiences are experiencing a massive surge in intrinsic value. By utilizing Audi Field’s predictable, high-volume foot traffic—where tens of thousands of consumers gather on a scheduled basis—Collaborative Fund is effectively turning a sports stadium into a high-utility marketing and distribution engine.
The Financial Context: Soaring Valuations in Soccer
While the operational integration of portfolio companies is the primary differentiator for Collaborative Fund, the underlying financial metrics of professional soccer certainly reinforced the viability of the investment. Sports valuations, particularly within North American soccer, have experienced unprecedented appreciation over recent years.
According to industry data and Forbes reports, Major League Soccer club values have climbed roughly 134% on average since 2019. Individual franchises have seen explosive growth; for instance, Inter Miami’s enterprise value approximately doubled within just two years following the arrival of global icon Lionel Messi.
D.C. United itself has undergone a dramatic financial transformation. The club’s valuation stood at a modest $35 million when current ownership groups established their footing in 2008. Today, factoring in the ownership of Audi Field, surrounding real estate developments, and league-wide revenue sharing, the franchise’s valuation has climbed to approximately $785 million.
This sustained financial momentum provides a reliable safety net for venture firms entering the sports arena, ensuring that even if operational synergies take time to materialize, the foundational asset class continues to appreciate robustly.
Implications for the Venture Capital and Sports Industries
The entry of Collaborative Fund into professional sports ownership signals a broader evolution in how venture capital firms think about liquidity, asset classes, and brand distribution. As software and internet markets face increasing competition and maturation, venture investors are actively seeking unique nodes of leverage where physical community and digital brand affinity intersect.
If Collaborative Fund succeeds in transforming Audi Field into an active testing ground for consumer startups, it could establish a new playbook for early-stage venture firms. Instead of merely funding companies that must spend exorbitant sums on digital customer acquisition platforms like Meta and Google, early-stage investors might increasingly acquire physical infrastructure assets that provide built-in audiences and direct-to-consumer channels.
At the same time, sports franchise owners are increasingly welcoming non-traditional institutional investors who bring operational value, technological insight, and marketing savvy rather than just passive capital. As sports leagues continue to professionalize and expand globally, the boundaries between Silicon Valley venture capital and traditional sports ownership will likely continue to blur.
Final approval from Major League Soccer remains the final hurdle for the transaction. If cleared, Collaborative Fund’s foray into D.C. United will be closely watched by founders, investors, and sports executives alike as a test of whether a venture fund can successfully hack the ultimate consumer product.
