Angel City FC may have finished 11th out of 13 teams in its season that ended early this month, but the Los Angeles soccer franchise has still managed to make a significant impact in the world of women’s sports. Founded in 2020 by venture capitalist Kara Nortman, Angel City has become a case study in how to successfully construct a women’s sports property.
Despite its on-field struggles, Angel City has attracted attention and support from a celebrity ownership group that includes Natalie Portman and Serena Williams. The team’s savvy approach to sponsorships and marketing has helped it generate buzz and achieve commercial success from the very beginning.
This success has led to the creation of Monarch Collective, a $250 million fund launched by Nortman in 2023. Monarch Collective is the first investment vehicle focused exclusively on women’s sports and holds stakes in multiple National Women’s Soccer League clubs, as well as FC Viktoria Berlin in Germany.
Nortman believes that women’s sports have reached an inflection point, with the market growing significantly in recent years. Monarch’s diverse portfolio reflects this optimism, with investments in soccer, basketball, golf, and tennis.
Unlike traditional venture capital firms, Monarch takes a hands-on approach to its investments, providing operational support to help teams become profitable. The fund’s strategy focuses on established sports with proven audiences and media revenue potential.
With limited partners including Melinda French Gates and former Netflix executives, Monarch’s mission is gaining traction in the world of women’s sports. The fund’s larger-than-expected debut fund is a testament to the growing interest in supporting and investing in women’s sports.
As Angel City and Monarch continue to pave the way for women’s sports, Nortman remains focused on the long-term sustainability and growth of the industry. By investing in infrastructure, governance, and operations, she hopes to create a lasting impact and ensure that women’s sports continue to thrive for years to come.
That growing interest validates Nortman’s thesis that women’s sports investment isn’t about finding the single perfect team but about supporting an ecosystem where multiple franchises can thrive. Some will win championships. Some will struggle competitively but succeed commercially. The key is having enough capital and operational expertise distributed across the market to weather individual setbacks.
Already, Angel City appears to be inspiring other ownership groups. “You started having other teams – Kansas City, Bay FC, Washington D.C. Spirit – with female-led ownership groups come in and show they could build a real P&L,” Nortman notes. Whether intentionally or not, Angel City became a template.
As women’s sports enters what feels like a sustained boom period — the Golden State Valkyries just played their first WNBA next season, the NWSL is expanding, media rights deals are growing — Nortman remains cautiously optimistic about whether this moment will prove different from past surges in interest.
The key, she argues, lies in the fundamentals: strong league governance, owner commitment, infrastructure investment, and building genuine community connections. Media attention creates opportunity; operational excellence makes it sustainable.
“Every spike is an opportunity to create a consistent experience around it,” Nortman says. “You have to look at all the underlying criteria to see where it’s likely to stick around.”
