“This is what you call investment,” began Emma Hayes. “Amazing philanthropy and someone who cares deeply about women’s sport. So, so grateful.” Nothing but some commending words from the USWNT manager, who praised Michele Kang for being a driving force behind U.S. Soccer as the American businesswoman donated over $30 million toward the development of the country’s women’s soccer program. But it’s not just Kang who is committed to this goal—sharing the same ideology is Hayes herself, who seems to have left a sizeable impact on the generous billionaire, ‘impressed‘ with the vision the English tactician brings to the U.S. setup.

They say birds of the same feather flock together, and no one would relate to that better than Hayes and Kang. Don’t be surprised, but the truth is, these two influential personalities are truly cut from the same cloth, especially when it comes to advocating for the women’s game and leading efforts to build a strong foundation for future generations. So when the two crossed paths with each other to have a brief yet impactful tête-à-tête, boy, did Michele feel she and Hayes were kindred spirits, let alone being swayed by the former Chelsea boss.

Michele Kang made this revelation during her latest exclusive interview with revered journalist Jeff Kassouf for ESPN FC’s Futbol W segment. “I was just very impressed,” she said when asked about her first impressions of having a chat with Hayes. “I had some conversations with her as well and I just found out that she’s not just the head coach of the women’s nationals, she has an unbelievable vision and there’s all kind of aligned,” added the American businesswoman.

Though Kang didn’t reveal the exact details of their conversation, what else could it have been about if not soccer, right? Well, at least we think so. More to that, key steps for effectively utilizing the funds must have been on the agenda. Just as US Soccer describes the investment as a chance to “scale competitive opportunities for youth players, expand and improve talent identification, and fuel professional development for female players, coaches, and referees.”

Additionally, as much as Hayes remains grateful to the founder and CEO of Cognosante—a medical technology company—for her generous $30 million contribution, we reckon the feeling must be mutual for the American mogul, seeing people like the former WSL manager put it to best use. Speaking of which—how does Emma intend to do that?

How does Emma Hayes aim to utilize Michele Kang’s $30 million purse?

Former US Men’s National Team striker Landon Donovan once described the state of his country’s youth program as “an absolute disaster.” Deep down, everyone knows that, unlike the grassroots systems in other major soccer nations, the U.S. isn’t developing its own at the pace it should. And that’s exactly what Emma Hayes has recognized—and vowed to fix.

This bold assertion and rather a promise was made earlier by the 48-year-old tactician, saying, “With the donation by Michelle Kang, I can put in place the youth development program that I think we need to in order to close the gap at the youth levels and produce more players for the senior level plus, most importantly, build a strategy that’s centered around the female lens.”

Notably, Hayes has already started working towards the development of not just the 2027 World Cup project, but even the 2028 LA Olympics as well. This must have been quite visible in the recent USWNT camps, where the former WSL boss introduced unique faces into her roster. By that time, one can actually expect Emma to make the most of the resources that she has been offered by USSF, as well as Kang.

In fact, forget the development of the grassroots sectors in the hands of Hayes for a while. Kang’s donation also champions the push for the nurturing of more female coaches and referees, aiming to bring the women’s game the same breadth of opportunities typically seen on the men’s side. In short, this development promises a lot for the future.