She didn’t just build an empire — she built stadiums where women’s dreams echo louder than doubt.

Rose Odette
Oct 29
4 min read

Lead Like a Lioness

Meet Michele Kang — the woman turning women’s sports into a billion-dollar revolution.

💫 Introduction - women’s dreams echo louder than doubt

Every once in a while, a woman comes along who doesn’t just change the game — she buys the stadium, rewrites the rules, and invites the next generation of women to play bigger. Michele Kang is that woman. Her story embodies what I call The Pride Method — transformational vision meets relentless results.

🩶 Her Origin Story

Michele Kang was born in Seoul, South Korea, and raised with the kind of quiet determination that only comes from growing up in a world that underestimates you. She immigrated to the United States with big dreams and no safety net, earning degrees in economics and public/private management from the University of Chicago before diving into the male-dominated world of healthcare technology. There, she built Cognosante, a multimillion-dollar firm that redefined how governments and health systems deliver care. (Michele Kang is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Cognosante, a health IT company which provides strategic consulting, acquisition support, application development, data integration, data standards, and business process operations services.) But Kang wasn’t content to simply succeed in business — she wanted to shift culture. Her story isn’t about climbing the corporate ladder; it’s about building a whole new arena where women don’t have to ask for a seat — they own the stadium.

🏟️ Where Her Stadium Stands

Michele Kang’s empire isn’t defined by one stadium — it’s a global footprint that stretches across continents. Her American home base is the Audi Field in Washington, D.C., where her team, the Washington Spirit, plays in front of thousands of fans who are finally seeing women’s sports get the spotlight — and the respect — they deserve. Across the Atlantic, her vision towers in France at the legendary Groupama Stadium, home of Olympique Lyonnais Féminin, one of the most successful women’s football clubs in history. She’s also planted her flag in London with the City Lionesses, expanding her reach into the heart of Europe’s soccer world. Kang isn’t just filling stadiums; she’s building temples of possibility — living monuments to what happens when women lead, invest, and execute with unstoppable precision. - women’s dreams echo louder than doubt!

🔥 The Transformation Trigger

After years of conquering the healthcare tech space, Michele Kang found herself asking the question every true leader eventually faces: What now? She had built wealth, influence, and a legacy — but not yet a revolution. That realization struck during a time when women’s sports were still treated like charity projects instead of billion-dollar opportunities. Kang saw the inequity, the talent overlooked, the markets ignored — and she recognized a truth few dared to say out loud: women’s sports didn’t need rescuing, they needed investment. In that instant, she made the pivot that defines lioness leadership — turning her business acumen into a weapon for equality. It wasn’t about chasing applause; it was about rewriting the rules of ownership, impact, and possibility.

💼 The Results

She became the majority owner of the Washington Spirit, acquired Olympique Lyonnais Féminin, and launched Kynisca Sports International, a global network of women’s football clubs. Then she pledged $30 million to U.S. women’s soccer — the largest private donation in the sport’s history. Her mantra? “Successful women must take the lead in advancing other women.” And she’s doing exactly that — leading from the front, funding the future, and forcing the world to see women’s sports as business, not benevolence.

🦁 The Legacy Lesson

Michele Kang didn’t just invest in women’s sports — she invested in the future of female leadership. Her legacy isn’t measured by the teams she owns or the millions she’s pledged; it’s measured by the mindset she ignited. She’s living proof that transformational vision paired with relentless results can rewrite entire industries. Kang embodies the Lioness Law: lead with purpose, execute with power, and leave a legacy that roars long after you’ve walked off the field. Her story challenges every woman in business to stop waiting for validation and start designing their own empires — with strategy, soul, and unstoppable conviction.

💡 Five Ideals to Roar With

Lead with investment, not intention. Talk is cheap — build what matters.
Create platforms, not moments. Systems scale movements.
Marry profit with purpose. Soul and strategy aren’t opposites.
Own your field. Don’t play the game — define it.
Legacy over limelight. The loudest success is the one that lasts.

🚀 Five Action Items for Today

Identify one area in your business where you can invest, not just participate.
Audit your impact — does your work elevate others or just sustain you?
Define your “ownership move” — where can you take control instead of seeking approval?
Build your platform — a podcast, course, or product that amplifies your voice.
Share one win publicly this week to model lioness leadership in action.