Venture Firm Collaborative Fund Takes Stake in MLS Club D.C. United
New York venture firm Collaborative Fund is taking a stake in soccer club D.C. United and its stadium Audi Field, following Thrive Capital's lead into pro sports ownership. The deal still requires MLS approval.
Collaborative Fund, a 15-year-old New York-based venture capital firm managing roughly $1 billion and known for early bets on Lyft, Reddit, Sweetgreen, and Olipop, has agreed to take a stake in Major League Soccer club D.C. United and its home stadium, Audi Field, in Washington, D.C. It is the latest, and smallest, firm to follow a path into professional sports ownership that Thrive Capital opened just months earlier.
A different approach
Thrive Capital, led by Joshua Kushner, built a separate permanent-capital vehicle called Thrive Eternal specifically to hold "iconic franchises" long-term. That vehicle first took a stake in the San Francisco Giants, then later bought the Los Angeles Lakers outright for a record $12.5 billion. Collaborative Fund, by contrast, is investing from the same early-stage fund it uses for seed and Series A deals, treating the stadium more as infrastructure than a long-term holding.
In a memo shared with TechCrunch, Collaborative founder Craig Shapiro described a sports franchise as "the ultimate consumer product," pointing to D.C. United's status as one of MLS's original clubs with a decades-long fan base. He cited favorable trends for American soccer, including the recent World Cup, the upcoming Los Angeles Olympics, and rising youth participation, as well as the club's ownership of Audi Field and surrounding real estate, a development pipeline in Loudoun County, Virginia, and rights to a future Baltimore expansion team.
Turning the stadium into a showcase
Shapiro's plan is to use Audi Field as a live showcase for products from Collaborative's portfolio companies, such as wearable maker Whoop or beverage brand Olipop. He views the tens of thousands of fans attending on a predictable schedule as a valuable distribution channel, especially as AI-driven content makes online experiences feel less authentic and live events more valuable by comparison.
The bet is also helped by rising sports valuations — D.C. United's own value has climbed from $35 million in 2008 to $785 million today. The deal still requires approval from MLS.
