Monumental Sports Continues to Grow

WASHINGTON BUSINESS JOURNAL: Meet the sports group powerhouse with eight professional teams, five venues, over 660 full-time employees and a recently debuted sports network.

For Ted Leonsis, the purchase of the Washington Capitals in 1999 was just the start. More than two decades later, the former AOL executive and venture capital guru has built Monumental Sports & Entertainment into a powerhouse with eight professional teams, five venues and over 660 full-time employees — and it’s not nearly done growing.

Last year, the sports and entertainment ownership group struck a deal to purchase all of NBC Sports Washington and officially rebranded it as Monumental Sports Network in September. The regional sports network now holds exclusive local television media rights for the NHL’s Washington Capitals, NBA’s Washington Wizards and WNBA’s Washington Mystics games.

Zach Leonsis, Monumental’s president of media and new enterprises, told sister paper Sports Business Journal in 2022 that the deal with NBC put MSE on track for more than $1 billion in annual revenue and added that the sports group would hit that mark through continued organic growth of its existing properties as well as through “acquiring complementary properties” and by “leveraging our Monumental platform to launch and [invest] in new businesses.”

Monumental Sports Network was recently made available as a direct-to-consumer subscription — just in time for the start of the NBA and NHL seasons.

“This is about making sure the games are accessible to in-market fans who don’t have a cable satellite subscription, and we’re delighted to get it out,” Zach Leonsis told Sports Business Journal this month.

Take look a look at what else is driving Greater Washington’s sports and entertainment engine.

Ted Leonsis, founder, chairman, principal owner and CEO

Raul Fernandez, vice chairman

Sheila Johnson, vice chairman

The member of the NBA’s Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference has made four trips to the NBA Finals — though none have been under MSE’s ownership.

The Mystics entered the Women’s National Basketball Association in 1997 and won their first-ever championship in 2019.

The NHL team has qualified for the playoffs 32 times and won a Stanley Cup championship in 2018.

The professional NBA 2K League team is part of the esports joint venture between the NBA and Take-Two Interactive that was first launched in 2018.

The affiliate of the Washington Wizards is a member of the NBA G League, the official minor league of the NBA.

The new esports-focused sub-brand will host the Caps Gaming Showcase — a 32-team, 6v6 EA Sports NHL competition on Xbox One.

The professional gaming organization first established in 2000 is also comprised of video content company 1UP Studios, esports wiki network Liquipedia and esports influencer management agency Liquid Media.

Based in Hershey, Pennsylvania, the American Hockey League team has served as the primary development club for the Capitals since the 2005-2006 season.

With a capacity of 20,000, the multipurpose sports and entertainment venue in downtown D.C. is owned and operated by MSE.

MSE manages the 10,000-seat arena on the Fairfax campus of George Mason University. The facility, opened in 1985, is home to Mason’s basketball teams and hosts a variety of concerts and entertainment.

The 20,000-square-foot training center for the Capitals in Arlington managed by MSE houses two NHL-sized ice rinks.

Unveiled in March, the nearly 14,000-square-foot facility next to Capital One Arena offers a 365-day-a-year series of immersive experiences in esports, music, event programming and community events — along with pre-and post-event activations for fans attending Capitals and Wizards games.

Located within the D.C.-owned Entertainment & Sports Arena in Ward 8 — the $65 million 118,000-square foot, 4,200-seat basketball facility for the Wizards, Mystics and Go-Go first opened in 2018 — the MHPC facility is leased from Events DC, the ESA’s manager, and operated by MSE.