Collaborative Fund, the 15-year-old, New York-based generalist venture firm that has roughly $1 billion under management and which made early bets on Lyft, Reddit, Sweetgreen, and Olipop, among others, is taking a stake in the soccer club D.C. United and its stadium, Audi Field.
It’s the latest — and smallest — firm to try something that Thrive Capital opened the door to just months ago: turning venture money into pro sports ownership.
To recap, Joshua Kushner’s Thrive launched a new vehicle, Thrive Eternal, explicitly built to hold “iconic franchises and cultural institutions” for decades, funded by many of the same investors already in Thrive’s venture and growth funds. The firm kicked things off by announcing a stake in the San Francisco Giants. Months later, the same vehicle — with former Disney CEO Bob Iger, a Thrive partner, joining as co-owner — bought the Lakers outright for a record $12.5 billion.
That’s new. Historically, money has poured into pro sports two other ways: individual tech fortunes, and private equity. For example, Vinod Khosla and his family agreed this summer to buy the Seattle Seahawks for a record $9.6 billion soon after the Khosla family also took a stake in the San Francisco 49ers alongside OpenAI chairman Bret Taylor. That was a personal-wealth play, the kind we’ve seen over and over.
Private equity firms have also been at this for years, including Sixth Street, which holds stakes in the Boston Celtics, the New England Patriots, and MLB’s San Francisco Giants; Ares, which owns a piece of the Miami Dolphins outright and separately financed Chelsea’s stadium plans through a $500 million preferred-equity deal; RedBird, which owns AC Milan outright and holds a minority stake in Fenway Sports Group, the holding company behind Liverpool and the Red Sox; and Arctos, with minority positions scattered across MLB, the NFL, the NBA, and European soccer. (Apollo, the newest entrant, has mostly stuck to sports financing deals so far rather than ownership stakes.)
Thrive and Collaborative are doing neither of those things. At the same time, the two firms’ approaches to sports ownership look very different. Thrive built a standalone, permanent-capital vehicle specifically to hold trophy assets. Collaborative is investing out of the same early-stage fund it uses to write seed and Series A checks, and treating the deal less like something to buy and hold and almost more like infrastructure.
In a memo shared with TechCrunch, Collaborative Fund founder and managing partner Craig Shapiro framed the deal as an extension of what the firm already does. “A franchise is the ultimate consumer product,” he wrote, arguing that D.C. United’s status as one of Major League Soccer’s original clubs gives Collaborative access to an institution with a decades-long fan base to build on.
He pointed to the tailwinds around American soccer specifically (a World Cup just behind the sport, the LA Olympics ahead of it, soaring youth participation numbers in the U.S.) as well as D.C.’s ownership of Audi Field in Washington, D.C., plus a talent-development pipeline through Loudoun County, Virginia, and rights to a future Baltimore expansion team.
Indeed, the thesis Shapiro laid out at a TechCrunch StrictlyVC event Thursday night in New York is less about owning a piece of an appreciating asset – the sports team itself – and more about what the team makes possible. Collaborative wants to turn Audi Field into what he describes as a living showcase for its own portfolio.
As a backer of both fitness band maker Whoop and the beverage brand Olipop, for example, Collaborative Fund is imagining a WHOOP wearables activation for fans, or Olipop drinks woven into game-day concessions. He’s thinking about the stadium’s foot traffic — tens of thousands of people showing up on a predictable schedule — as a distribution channel at a time when, because AI is making more of daily life feel synthetic, live experiences are becoming more valuable.
Shapiro doesn’t dwell on this, but it surely helped sell Collaborative’s investors that team valuations have been soaring, so the stake could pay off on its own. Soccer valuations in particular have been on a tear. Inter Miami’s franchise value has roughly doubled in the two years since Lionel Messi arrived, MLS’s average club value is up roughly 134% since 2019, and D.C. United’s own valuation has climbed from $35 million in 2008 to $785 million today, factoring in its ownership of Audi Field and the surrounding real estate.
If Shapiro is right that a franchise is also “the ultimate consumer product,” it could be a pretty good place to park money. Time will tell.
The deal is subject to MLS approval.
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Key Takeaways
- Venture Capital Enters Pro Sports:Collaborative Fund is the latest, following Thrive Capital, to inject venture money directly into professional sports team ownership, marking a significant shift from traditional investment models.
- A Distinct VC Playbook:Unlike Thrive’s long-term “trophy asset” fund, Collaborative Fund is investing out of its early-stage vehicle, viewing its stake in D.C. United as an “infrastructure” asset and a living lab for its portfolio companies.
- Beyond Appreciation: Experiential Distribution:Collaborative’s thesis extends beyond asset appreciation, aiming to leverage Audi Field and D.C. United’s fan base as a unique distribution and marketing channel for its consumer-focused portfolio companies in an increasingly digital world.
Venture Capital’s New Arena: How Collaborative Fund is Redefining Sports Ownership
The lines between tech investment and professional sports ownership are blurring at an unprecedented pace. In a move that signals a burgeoning trend within venture capital, Collaborative Fund, a seasoned generalist firm managing roughly $1 billion, has announced a strategic stake in Major League Soccer’s D.C. United and its home stadium, Audi Field. This isn’t just another investment; it represents a fresh, nuanced approach to professional sports, building on a path recently blazed by venture giant Thrive Capital.
The Shifting Landscape of Sports Investment
For decades, professional sports teams have been coveted assets, typically acquired through two primary avenues: the immense personal fortunes of wealthy individuals, often tech titans, or the structured, long-term plays of private equity firms. We’ve seen the former repeatedly, from Vinod Khosla’s family acquiring the Seattle Seahawks for a staggering $9.6 billion, to their stake in the San Francisco 49ers alongside OpenAI chairman Bret Taylor. These are personal wealth allocations, driven by passion, prestige, and the undeniable appreciation of sports franchises.
On the private equity front, firms like Sixth Street, Ares, RedBird, and Arctos have systematically built portfolios of minority and outright stakes across the NBA, NFL, MLB, and European soccer. Their methodology often involves financial engineering, operational efficiencies, and leveraging scale across multiple assets. Apollo, a more recent entrant, has primarily focused on financing deals rather than direct ownership, showcasing another facet of private capital’s involvement.
However, a new paradigm is emerging from the venture capital world. Joshua Kushner’s Thrive Capital dramatically altered the game months ago with the launch of Thrive Eternal, a dedicated permanent-capital vehicle designed to acquire and hold “iconic franchises and cultural institutions” for generations. This bold initiative saw Thrive Eternal taking a stake in the San Francisco Giants, followed by the groundbreaking outright acquisition of the Los Angeles Lakers for a record $12.5 billion, with former Disney CEO Bob Iger joining as co-owner. Thrive’s strategy is clear: identify irreplaceable, cultural cornerstones and hold them indefinitely, much like a family office but with institutional backing.
Collaborative Fund’s Unorthodox Playbook: The ‘Infrastructure’ Thesis
While Collaborative Fund follows Thrive Capital into the sports ownership arena, its approach is remarkably distinct. Unlike Thrive’s standalone, permanent-capital vehicle for trophy assets, Collaborative is deploying capital from its existing early-stage fund – the very same fund it uses for seed and Series A investments in tech startups. This isn’t about buying and holding a trophy asset; it’s about treating the sports franchise and its physical home as a dynamic piece of “infrastructure.”
As Collaborative Fund founder and managing partner Craig Shapiro outlined in a memo to TechCrunch, and elaborated on at a recent TechCrunch StrictlyVC event, the D.C. United deal is a natural extension of the firm’s core mission. Shapiro views a sports franchise as “the ultimate consumer product,” an institution with a built-in, decades-long fan base and cultural resonance. D.C. United, as one of Major League Soccer’s original clubs, offers precisely this kind of foundational engagement.
The firm’s thesis transcends simple asset appreciation, though that remains a compelling backdrop. The core idea is to transform Audi Field, D.C. United’s stadium, into a “living showcase” for Collaborative Fund’s extensive portfolio of consumer brands. Imagine a game day where fitness band maker Whoop hosts interactive wearable activations for fans, or beverage brand Olipop is seamlessly integrated into concession stands, offering healthier alternatives. The stadium’s predictable foot traffic – tens of thousands of engaged consumers on a regular schedule – becomes a powerful, real-world distribution channel, a tangible antidote to the increasingly synthetic and algorithm-driven nature of daily digital life. In an era where AI permeates more aspects of existence, the value of authentic, live experiences is soaring, and sports deliver precisely that.
Driving Forces: Why Now for VC in Sports?
Several converging factors are making professional sports an attractive, albeit unconventional, frontier for venture capital. Firstly, the tailwinds for American soccer are undeniable. The sport recently hosted a successful World Cup, with the LA Olympics on the horizon, and youth participation numbers in the U.S. are soaring, creating a demographic groundswell. D.C. United itself boasts significant strategic assets: ownership of Audi Field in a major market, a robust talent-development pipeline through Loudoun County, Virginia, and rights to a future Baltimore expansion team, indicating potential for regional growth and diversification.
Secondly, the financial upside is hard to ignore. While not Collaborative’s primary driver, the soaring valuations of sports franchises, particularly in soccer, are a powerful incentive. Inter Miami’s franchise value has nearly doubled since Lionel Messi’s arrival. MLS’s average club value has surged approximately 134% since 2019, reflecting robust growth. D.C. United’s own valuation has climbed from $35 million in 2008 to an impressive $785 million today, a figure that includes its ownership of Audi Field and surrounding real estate. This appreciation provides a strong floor and potential upside for investors.
This trend signifies a broader evolution in venture capital. As traditional tech markets become increasingly competitive and capital-intensive, firms are exploring new asset classes that offer diversification, unique brand-building opportunities, and direct access to engaged consumer bases. Sports, with their inherent cultural impact and loyal following, present an ideal platform.
Bottom Line
Collaborative Fund’s investment in D.C. United represents more than just another venture deal; it’s a strategic pivot, showcasing a new frontier for venture capital where traditional early-stage funds are being deployed into experiential assets. By viewing a sports franchise as an “ultimate consumer product” and its stadium as a living laboratory for portfolio companies, Collaborative is pioneering an innovative model for brand distribution and engagement. This shift reflects a growing recognition of the enduring value of live experiences and community in an increasingly digital world, setting a precedent for how venture capital might redefine its role in cultivating not just technology, but also culture and consumer interaction. The long-term success of this “infrastructure” thesis remains to be seen, but the bold move marks a fascinating evolution in the venture landscape.
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