Team USA Seeks Outside Capital for New Commercial Rights Vehicle

Team USA is seeking outside financing for a new commercial rights vehicle called U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Ventures, chief executive Sarah Hirshland told Sportico on Tuesday. Sky News first reported that the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee had hired the Raine Group to explore a stake sale or debt raise, and that the venture could be valued in the billions of dollars.

Hirshland declined to comment on the valuation. Asked whether the USOPC is open to money from private equity, institutional capital or sovereign wealth funds, she said: "Our responsibility is to look at all of our options, and I would say we are doing that."

The push comes as the USOPC sharpens its direct-to-consumer ambitions. "Sports entities are all focused on building their direct-to-consumer value proposition," Hirshland said in the interview. "How do we build our fan base, know who our fans are and customize offerings for those fans? How do we drive content and engagement both within our competition environment but also outside and beyond our competition environment?"

Why is the timing urgent?

Discussions about the venture date to 2024, Hirshland said, but they're accelerating because of a rare gap in the Olympic calendar. The USOPC has an existing commercial partnership with the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic organizing committee that dissolves at the end of that year. It has not yet formed a corresponding agreement with the hosts of the 2034 Winter Games in Utah.

There's a second deadline. Beginning in January, the USOPC enters the renewal period for commercial rights that take effect in 2029 and beyond. That timeline forces the financing conversation now.

U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Ventures will span domestic and global sponsorship and licensing deals, content distribution and direct-to-consumer sales. One carve-out: Utah 2034 ticketing and hospitality will remain with the organizing committee.

How cyclical is Team USA's revenue?

The USOPC and its national sport governing bodies live on a four-year revenue rollercoaster. According to tax filings, Team USA reported revenue of $264 million in 2025, an Olympic off-year, against $496 million in 2024, the period of the Paris Summer Games. That $232 million swing between consecutive years is the structural problem the venture is designed to smooth out.

The existing commercial base is substantial. Team USA holds domestic contracts with Comcast, Delta Air Lines, Google, Starbucks, Chase, Allstate, Honda and others. It also shares global commercial revenues with IOC partners including Alibaba, Coca-Cola, Procter & Gamble and Visa.

Will it avoid FIFA's fate?

The plan invites an obvious comparison. In June, a leaked plan by global soccer governing body FIFA to sell stakes in its own commercial operations drew such vociferous pushback from member organizations, especially UEFA, that it was ultimately withdrawn.

Asked why the USOPC's effort would fare differently, Hirshland said she wasn't privy to the FIFA plan. "Our support for Team USA athletes and our national governing bodies is at the center of our motivation and will remain at the center of our motivation from start to finish," she said. "This is about growing the overall revenue pie for the constituencies that we serve."

What happens next?

The January start of the rights renewal window gives the USOPC a hard deadline for structuring the vehicle. With Raine Group advising and two home-soil Games ahead — LA 2028 and Utah 2034 — the size of the stake on offer, and who buys it, will shape how Team USA monetizes its fans for the cycle that begins in 2029.