Jay Anthony Precourt Jr.[2] (born c. 1969–70) is an American investor and sports team owner. He is the CEO of Two Oak Ventures (formerly Precourt Sports Ventures), a group that owns Major League Soccer club Austin FC and formerly owned the Columbus Crew. He is also a managing partner of Precourt Capital Management, a private investment management firm based in San Francisco, California.
Anthony Precourt | |
|---|---|
| Born | Jay Anthony Precourt Jr. 1969 or 1970 (age 53–54)[1] |
| Alma mater | Pepperdine University (BA) Dartmouth College Tuck School of Business (MBA) |
| Spouse | Agatha Matosek |
| Children | 3 |
Education and career
Precourt was raised in Denver, Colorado, and went to high school in Connecticut.[3] He graduated from Pepperdine University with a Bachelor of Arts in political science and from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College with a Master of Business Administration.[4] Precourt entered the corporate finance business with stints at Merrill Lynch, Alex. Brown & Sons, and WHV Investment Management.[5] He then started his own private equity firm, Precourt Capital Management, in 2008, focusing on the energy sector.[4][5]
MLS ownership
Precourt, who had a stated interest in soccer, formed Precourt Sports Ventures LLC in 2012 and looked to invest in Major League Soccer.[6] The firm bought the Columbus Crew SC from Clark Hunt for $68 million, then a record for a MLS franchise.[7][8] At the first Crew match he attended, several months before the sale was finalized, the scoreboard at Mapfre Stadium caught fire and delayed kickoff for hours.[6][9] Under Precourt's ownership, the Crew hired Gregg Berhalter as its manager and first sporting director;[10] and unveiled an updated brand identity that included a new logo and name with the suffix "SC".[11]
On October 17, 2017, Precourt Sports Ventures announced that it was considering moving the franchise in 2019 to Austin, Texas.[12] The move came as a surprise to Columbus leaders and fans.[13] After offering an apology on Twitter,[14] Precourt was the focus of anger from the team's supporters, culminating in the establishment of the Save the Crew movement.[15]
In December 2018, Precourt Sports Ventures announced they had negotiated an agreement with the City of Austin to build a $242 million stadium on public land at 10414 McKalla Place,[16] following an evaluation of several other city-owned properties.[17] Construction began in 2019,[18] and Q2 Stadium opened in 2021, hosting its first soccer match on June 16, 2021.[19][20]
On January 1, 2019, ownership of Crew SC was preliminarily transferred from Precourt Sports Ventures to a group composed of Dee and Jimmy Haslam and Dr. Pete Edwards, who pledged to keep the Crew in Columbus and build a new stadium in downtown Columbus.[21] Austin FC was officially announced as the 27th MLS franchise on January 15, 2019 and is set to begin play in 2021.[22] Precourt Sports Ventures was rebranded as Two Oak Ventures in July 2019, with Precourt remaining as CEO,[23] and six Austin-based owners were added the following month.[24]
Personal life
Precourt lives in Austin, Texas,[7] with his wife Agatha and three children.[6] His father is Jay Precourt, a former oil executive.[2][4][22]