WASHINGTON, October 29, 2026 – Eleven sellouts. That is how many times Audi Field has sold out thanks to Kim Stone, who took the reigns of the Washington Spirit, and the executive management wants you to know that it isn’t done with counting.
Kim Stone was awarded the Washington Business Journal’s 2026 Sports Leader of the Year on Oct. 27, 2026. Kim is one of just eight awardees selected for the publication’s 2026 CEO Awards. The award ceremony is scheduled for Dec. 11.
Kim Stone gave the credit away right at the get-go. “I’m honored to receive this award… but this recognition belongs to the whole Spirit family,” she said. Humble? Sure. But the numbers make it hard to argue she didn’t earn a bow.
Crowds matter, too. The club has seen more than 224,000 fans come through the gates in 2026, and attendance has risen 87.5 percent since Stone took the helm. The “Rowdy Audi” moniker, which was once an optimistic marketing message, now serves to describe what the National Women’s Soccer League calls the best home-field environment in the league.
Why is that significant? Because, for a women’s soccer club to make attendance into a business is fairly new territory. Stone came on board in January 2024 as the first-ever CEO of the club, joining owner Michele Kang. She was not new to big meetings. Before the Spirit, she was the president of UBS Arena, had been with the Miami HEAT for 23 years, and led the creation of Chase Center in San Francisco as its first general manager.
These commercial figures are striking. The Spirit saw a more than 70 percent year-over-year increase in full-season memberships, along with a 90 percent renewal rate. In a spring letter to investors, Stone reported that corporate partnerships were up 63 percent and ticketing revenue was up 83 percent year over year. Earlier this year, the club predicted 60 percent revenue growth in 2026, with 12 new corporate partners coming on board in the year.
Recognition is coming fast and furious. The Spirit became the second team in NWSL history to be named a finalist for a national Team of the Year award earlier in 2026. Stone has received accolades from the advertising trade publication’s list of the most powerful women in sports, and the Women Who Mean Business award from this business journal last year.
A fair caveat: the vast majority of these numbers are provided by the club itself, and with low numbers as a baseline, growth rates are staggering. The club hasn’t been independently audited for their accounting by anyone external to the club, and it will remain to be seen whether this rate can be sustained after the initial period of intrigue passes.
However, the coincidence can hardly be ignored. On November 21st, Washington D.C. will host the 2026 NWSL Championship, and the grounds of the Washington Spirit will play host to the biggest night of the league, weeks before Stone receives her award.
Look before you leap, as they say. But in this case, the leap seems to be working.
