Melinda French Gates is joining the Seattle Kraken as a minority investor, pending NHL approval.
The move pairs one of the world's most influential philanthropists and business leaders with Kraken majority owner Samantha Holloway, one of the few women to serve as a principal owner in the NHL.
French Gates told ESPN she was drawn not only to continuing her investment in Seattle, but also to Holloway's vision for what the Kraken could become.
"I see this incredible opportunity that sports plays for a community to bring people together," French Gates said. "When I met Samantha and learned about her leadership - her background in tech and the innovative way she approaches challenges - it felt like a natural fit for me."
French Gates, who grew up in Dallas, has long considered herself a passionate sports fan. But the investment marks her first ownership stake in a major professional sports franchise and comes at a time when women are assuming increasingly visible leadership roles across sports.
"It's just time," French Gates said. "What you're seeing is a generation of women coming into their full power. I've walked into tough rooms, and being one of the few is very hard. Once we can create enough that we're one of many, it just gets easier."
French Gates has spent much of her career focused on expanding opportunity for women and families through philanthropy, investing and advocacy. One of the Kraken's early bright spots is their One Roof Foundation, which has focused on expanding youth access to sports.
"We're really aligned on that," Holloway said. "We really believe that in order to evolve the sport of hockey over the next 20 years, we have to start now by growing the fan base and growing the number of people playing the game."
Holloway's ambitions extend beyond hockey. She confirmed she is assembling an ownership group prepared to bid for an NBA franchise, continuing the longstanding pursuit of bringing the SuperSonics back to Seattle.
Holloway said the Kraken ownership group's recent acquisition of a majority stake in Climate Pledge Arena strengthens its position.
"The City of Seattle certainly could use an NBA team, and the fans here are ready for it," Holloway said. "If that happens, they will all buy their Kraken friends beers because it wouldn't happen without them. So we are hopeful, we are working on it, and stay tuned."
While community impact is important, Holloway stressed that improving on-ice results remains the franchise's top priority.
The Kraken have reached the playoffs just once in five seasons and are already on their third head coach. After finishing sixth in the Pacific Division at 34-37-11 this season, Seattle hired consulting firm Sportsology to conduct an independent review of hockey operations.
"It's no secret that we're not thrilled with where we ended the season, and we take that really seriously," Holloway said. "We can talk all day about the work we do in the community, and that's great, but winning does matter.
"We are looking into every part of our hockey operations team right now, understanding what's working and what's not working, and everything is on the table."
French Gates, meanwhile, said she believes the Kraken are on the path toward becoming a Stanley Cup contender.
"My hopes and dreams are that they blow the roof off the stadium because they're so loud because they won a Stanley Cup," French Gates said. "They absolutely can do that. We know they can do that. Sam's making the right investments and looking at it the right way. Seattle is a big sports town. We saw the Mariners go quite far in the playoffs. We saw what happened with the Seahawks this year. So within 10 years, I have all the confidence that's going to happen, if not a whole lot sooner."