Red Stars’ new investor group headlined by Olympic gold medalist Kendall Coyne SchofieldAnnie Costabileon March 1, 2021 at 12:00 pm

The announcement comes on the heels of a number of newly named celebrity investors in NWSL teams.

The Red Stars introduced a new, diverse investor group Monday morning headlined by Olympic gold medalist and Blackhawks development coach Kendall Coyne Schofield and former Bears defensive end Israel Idonije.

The announcement comes on the heels of a number of newly named celebrity investors in NWSL teams. The Red Stars’ 14 new investors include industry leaders in entertainment, technology and business with ties to Chicago. Their goal is to continue developing a world-class environment reflective of the athletes playing for the Red Stars.

For Coyne Schofield and her husband, NFL unrestricted free agent Michael Schofield, their investment is deeply personal.

As a member of the Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association, which just embarked on its second Dream Gap Tour, Coyne Schofield is all too familiar with the lack of investment in women’s sports. Her involvement — like her career as a player, a broadcaster and a development coach — is to show women what’s possible.

Annie Costabile/Sun-Times

“As two professional athletes ourselves, we’ve had two very different experiences in the professional sports world,” Coyne Schofield said. “Our involvement is beyond capital. It’s about bringing awareness to the disparity between men’s and women’s professional sports.”

“Kendall is one of the hardest working athletes I know,” Schofield said. “Women’s sports don’t get the respect they deserve. By us investing in it, we hope that it helps grow the women’s game. And when I say the women’s game, I mean all of them.”

Coyne Schofield jokes that even though her life revolves around women’s sports and advocating for the sustainability of women’s professional sports leagues, women’s hockey more specifically, her husband might be the biggest women’s sports fan in their household.

Regardless, they’re hoping their investment will inspire others to invest in women’s sports when they see the difference it makes.

Before making their final decision, Coyne Schofield said she was fortunate to have a conversation with another investor, award-winning journalist Sarah Spain. When she learned Spain was on board, along with other investors such as music executive Colleen Mares and entrepreneur Marie Tillman, it reinforced the reasons she wanted to be involved.

The Red Stars are the latest NWSL franchise to announce the addition of high-profile investors. In January, four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka joined the back-to-back championship-winning North Carolina Courage. After the news broke, founding and majority Red Stars owner Arnim Whisler texted the Sun-Times that the Red Stars spoke to the tennis star, too.

Most recently, the Washington Spirit introduced a group of more than 30 new investors, Chelsea Clinton and Jenna Bush Hager among them.

Angel City FC, a 2022 expansion team, helped create this ripple effect with a jaw-dropping ownership group. The team’s dozens of investors include 23-time tennis Grand Slam champion Serena Williams and actress Natalie Portman.

Spain said she felt inspired by colleague and two-time World Cup champion and Olympic gold medalist Julie Foudy’s ownership stake in Angel City FC. It didn’t occur to her that the Red Stars might be expanding their ownership group or that she would be approached by Whisler. She just knew she wanted to be an owner.

“At the ESPNW Summit, one of my panels was with Abby Wambach and Glennon Doyle,” Spain said. “Abby talked in her book about if they don’t give you a seat at the table, screw pulling up a chair and build a new table. I think I kind of joked with [Julie] Foudy and Glennon and Abby, saying, ‘Well, I’m going to be an owner.’ ”

Spain began earnest conversations with Whisler in October. When she brought the idea to her financial advisor, she was told, “This is a perfect fit for you.”

When Whisler originally set out to expand the Red Stars’ capital base, he did it with a few goals in mind. He wanted to reflect the diversity of the organization’s fan base in its owners, to be able to attract global soccer stars and to secure the future success of the organization.

The list of owners, which the team said is still developing:

· Jessie Becker

· Dean Egerter (founding member)

· Julie Haddon

· Israel Idonije

· Jordan Levin

· Abel Lezcano

· Colleen Mares

· Michael Raimondi

· Steve Ritchie (founding member)

· Kendall Coyne Schofield

· Michael Schofield

· Sarah Spain

· Marie Tillman

· Brian Walsh

· Arnim Whisler (founding member)

· Kevin Willer

· David M. Zapata

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