San Francisco’s newest women’s professional sports team hasn’t even taken the court yet, but LOVB SF is already making waves in the sports world with an ownership model that’s breaking all the traditional rules.

The League One Volleyball expansion franchise just announced a massive expansion of its investor base that reads like a who’s who of sports excellence. We’re talking Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, legendary USMNT player Julie Foudy, and Indiana Fever guard Lexie Hull. But here’s what makes this really wild: there are over 50 owners involved, and together they’ve earned a combined 32 Olympic medals.

Chairwoman Jes Wolfe is clear that this wasn’t accidental. “This is about bringing together women, bringing together excellence, bringing together a community that is united in wanting to build something that will last for a very, very, very long time in San Francisco”, she explained. The key difference? These aren’t passive investors sitting back and cashing checks. LOVB SF is actively seeking owners who will actually contribute their expertise, networks, and voices to building the franchise from the ground up.

That means legendary players like Abby Wambach, Holly Rowe, Brandi Chastain, and Olympic volleyball icon Kelsey Robinson Cook are joining monthly Zoom calls with the TaskRabbit founder, the Warriors’ team ophthalmologist, and global AI entrepreneurs. The organization is planning annual in-person summits and forming subcommittees focused on everything from sponsorships to marketing.

This approach completely flips the traditional sports ownership model on its head. Most pro sports teams intentionally keep ownership groups small and tight, with just a handful of controlling stakeholders making decisions. Private equity firms often swoop in to take stakes, like how Sixth Street backs Bay FC. But LOVB SF is betting that for women’s sports, where growth depends just as much on community enthusiasm as it does on infrastructure, a larger, more engaged ownership base will accelerate everything.

The timing makes sense. The Bay Area has already proven itself as a powerhouse for women’s sports. The Golden State Valkyries just wrapped up their first WNBA season, and Bay FC is in its third year building something special. Volleyball, though, is seen as the next frontier. The sport is already huge at the youth and college levels, and the U.S. pro ceiling remains largely untapped.

For many owners, the investment is deeply personal. Steve Kerr and his wife Margot are part-owners alongside their daughter Maddy, who played as a libero at Cal. Others, like three-time Olympian YK Kim, are accomplished in the sport itself. The common thread? They all want to build something they wish had existed sooner.

LOVB SF won’t debut until next season and is still finalizing its arena deal within San Francisco city limits, but the franchise is already changing how we think about ownership, investment, and building women’s sports in America.