Billionaire investor Ken Griffin, the founder of Citadel, has pledged a multi‑million‑dollar package that brings Argentine tactician Mauricio Pochettino to the helm of the U.S. men’s national soccer team.
A hedge‑fund’s soccer gamble
Pochettino, who once steered Tottenham Hotspur, Paris Saint‑Germain and Chelsea, inherits a squad that has already navigated the group stage and is set to meet Bosnia and Herzegovina in the round of 32 on July 1.
The partnership reflects Griffin’s long‑standing passion for the sport. He began playing at age six, continued through high school and later took on coaching roles, a trajectory that informs his hands‑on approach to building a competitive U.S. side.
Griffin’s financial footprint in soccer extends beyond the national team. In 2017 he contributed $3 million to the U.S. Soccer Foundation, funding 50 mini‑pitches across Chicago, and six years later added another $5 million to replicate the program in Miami‑Dade County.
The impact of those investments reaches local communities, where the foundation’s mini‑pitches provide accessible spaces for youth to practice the game. Griffin and real‑estate developer Stephen Ross also donated more than 1,200 tickets, ensuring that Miami residents can experience World Cup matches live.
Beyond the pitch, Griffin’s philanthropy includes more than $2.5 billion given to medical research, political campaigns and his alma mater, Harvard, underscoring a pattern of large‑scale giving that blends personal interest with public benefit.
Citadel, the hedge fund he leads, was named the most profitable of its kind for the fourth consecutive year in 2025, managing $68 billion in assets, a testament to the financial muscle that underpins his soccer ambitions.