If you walked down to the Berkley Riverfront in Kansas City a few years ago, you would’ve seen a lot of gravel and not much else. Now, there is a $140 million architectural marvel sitting right there. It’s CPKC Stadium, and it’s the first stadium on the planet built specifically for a professional women’s sports team. People keep asking, "Wait, who actually pulled this off?" When you look into who owns KC Current, you aren't just looking at a list of names on a corporate filing. You’re looking at a group that basically decided the "old way" of running women's sports—sharing stadiums with men's teams and playing on high school turf—was done.
The ownership is a tight-knit circle. It’s led by founders Angie and Chris Long, along with Brittany Mahomes and, more recently, her husband, some guy named Patrick Mahomes. Yeah, that one.
The Financial Engine: Angie and Chris Long
Most people know the Mahomes name, but the heavy lifting on the business side really started with the Longs. Honestly, they’re a bit of a finance power house. Chris and Angie are the founders of Palmer Square Capital Management, a firm that manages something like $35 billion in assets. They aren't just "rich fans"; they are experts in credit and structured finance.
They met at Princeton. Chris played basketball; Angie played golf and rugby. They moved to Kansas City in 2006 and basically became the city’s biggest cheerleaders. When the 2019 World Cup in France blew up, they were there in the stands. They saw the energy and realized that women’s soccer was a massive, undervalued asset.
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It’s interesting because they didn't just buy a team that was already working. They basically rescued the "Royals" brand from Utah (which had originally moved there from KC) and brought the players back home in late 2020. They put up the cash—$117 million to $140 million depending on which construction audits you believe—to build the stadium privately. No big public tax hikes. Just their own skin in the game.
Why the Longs Matter
- The Vision: They wanted a "purpose-built" home. No more being "tenants" in someone else's house.
- The Funding: They used their background at J.P. Morgan and Palmer Square to secure the financing that most banks wouldn't touch for a women’s-only venue.
- The Expansion: They’ve already started looking overseas, recently acquiring the women’s side of the Danish club HB Køge.
The Soccer Soul: Brittany Mahomes
Before she was a massive influencer and the wife of an NFL superstar, Brittany Mahomes (then Matthews) was a legit pro soccer player. She played at UT Tyler and then went to Iceland to play professionally for UMF Afturelding. She knows what it’s like to play in stadiums where the locker rooms are basically converted closets.
When the Longs were looking to bring a team to Kansas City, they knew they needed someone who understood the player’s perspective. Brittany was a founding owner from day one in December 2020. She’s often the one you see on the sidelines, genuinely losing her mind over a goal. It isn't a vanity project for her. She was the one pushing for the $18 million training facility in Riverside, Missouri, which, again, was the first of its kind.
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The First Active NFL Owner: Patrick Mahomes
In early 2023, the group officially added Patrick Mahomes to the ownership roster. It made him the first active NFL player to have an equity stake in an NWSL team. Look, having Patrick involved is obviously great for marketing, but it goes deeper. He’s already a part-owner of the Kansas City Royals and Sporting KC. He’s basically trying to own the entire sports district of Missouri at this point.
But for the Current, having Patrick means the team has the ultimate "KC brand" stamp of approval. When he shows up to a match in a teal jersey, people notice. It helps that their daughter, Sterling, is often seen at the games, making it a "family business" vibe that the city has really rallied around.
How the Ownership Structure Works
It’s not some massive 50-person board. It’s these four. While the Longs handle the macro-level investment and the crazy logistics of building a stadium on a former dumping ground (literally, the stadium site used to be where they dumped debris from the old Kemper Arena roof), the Mahomes family brings the culture and the competitive fire.
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The team also brought in Raven Jemison as President to handle the day-to-day operations. It’s a smart move—keep the owners as the visionaries and let the pros run the business side. They even signed the Longs' daughter, Mary Long, to the team recently after she played a stint at Duke. It’s truly a family affair.
Real Evidence of Their Impact
- Sellouts: In 2024, they became the first NWSL team to sell out every single home match. Every. Single. One.
- The Pitch: They didn't settle for turf. They installed a high-end grass pitch that rivals Premier League standards.
- Local Food: They brought in local legends like Joe's Kansas City Bar-B-Que to the stadium instead of generic hot dog vendors.
What Most People Get Wrong About the Owners
You’ll hear people say, "Oh, Patrick Mahomes bought a soccer team." Actually, Brittany was there first. And the Longs are the ones who put the financial scaffolding together to make it a $100-million-plus enterprise. Patrick is a "co-owner," but he’s joining a ship that was already sailing at full speed.
Also, people think the city paid for the stadium. Nope. It was almost entirely privately funded. The Longs requested some state tax credits to help with the rising costs of construction (inflation hit everyone), but the risk sits on their shoulders, not the taxpayers. That’s almost unheard of in modern sports.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Investors
If you're following the KC Current or looking at how the NWSL is changing, here is what you need to know:
- Watch the Riverfront: The ownership group owns the land around the stadium too. They are planning a massive district with housing and retail. This isn't just a soccer team; it's a real estate play.
- The Multi-Club Model: Keep an eye on their acquisitions in Europe. By owning teams in different leagues (like HB Køge), they can create a pipeline for talent and branding that other NWSL teams haven't figured out yet.
- Attend a Match: If you want to see what this ownership group has actually built, you have to see the stadium in person. The proximity of the seats to the pitch is unlike anything in the MLS or NFL.
The KC Current ownership isn't just about writing checks. It’s about a specific group of Kansas City residents who decided to bet on the idea that women’s sports can be a primary product, not a secondary thought. They’ve proven it works.