Mark Ein

Mark David Ein (born December 31, 1964) is an American venture capitalist and sports entrepreneur. He is a limited partner of the National Football League (NFL) team Washington Commanders and is an investment partner in the English football club Leeds United and the Major League Baseball (MLB) team Baltimore Orioles. Ein founded the World TeamTennis (WTT) team Washington Kastles in 2008 and has chaired the DC Open tournament since 2019. He also owns the Washington City Paper, serves as chairman of the President's Export Council, and is a member of the Federal City Council, World Economic Forum, and Gridiron Club.

Early life

Ein was born on December 31, 1964, in Chevy Chase, Maryland.[1][2][3] He earned a degree in economics from the Wharton School in 1987 and an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1992. Ein is a member of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity. [4]

Career

Ein worked for The Carlyle Group, Brentwood Associates, and Goldman Sachs before founding Venturehouse Group in 1999.[5][6] A lifelong enthusiast of tennis, Ein founded the Washington Kastles of World TeamTennis (WTT) in 2008 and is a board member of the United States Tennis Association (USTA).[5] He earned an ATP ranking of 1098 at age 46 after playing in a few ATP doubles tennis tournaments.[1][7] Ein bought the Washington City Paper in 2017 and became chairman and CEO of the DC Open tennis tournament in 2019.[8][9] He is the chairman of the board for Kastle Systems, a security company, and CEO of Capitol Investment Corp.[6] Ein founded the Washington Justice of the esports Overwatch League in 2018.[10] Ein became a Washington Business Hall of Fame laureate in 2018.[11]

In 2023, president Joe Biden appointed Ein to chair the President's Export Council, a group within the International Trade Administration that serves as a national trade advisory committee.[12] He is also a member of the Federal City Council, World Economic Forum, and the Gridiron Club.[5][13] The same year, he was a part of an investment group led by Josh Harris that bought the Washington Commanders of the National Football League (NFL) for $6.05 billion.[14][15][16] He and Harris have been close friends since elementary school; they attended Wharton and Harvard Business School together and shared beach houses during their time on Wall Street.[17][3][7] Ein became an investment partner in the English football club Leeds United in May 2024 and the Baltimore Orioles of Major League Baseball (MLB) in September 2025.[18][19]

Personal life

Ein is Jewish; his mother is a Holocaust survivor.[20] He was an executive producer of the 2008 documentary film Kicking It.[4] In 2001, he purchased the home of Katharine Graham in the Georgetown district of Washington, D.C. for $8 million following her death. He never resided in it and put up for sale in 2024.[21]

Ein married Sally Stiebel in September 2013.[22] The wedding included a live performance of Y.M.C.A. by the Village People and was attended by over 350 guests, including Mark Warner, Ted Leonsis, Raul Fernandez, Vernon Jordan, Valerie Jarrett, Debra Lee, Gene Sperling, Larry Summers, David Bradley, Adrian Fenty, Jack Evans, Murphy Jensen, Sam Kass, Capricia Marshall, and Mitchell Rales.[22] They spent their honeymoon at Lake Como in Italy and reside in Georgetown.[22]

In 2009, D.C. mayor Adrian Fenty presented Ein with the key to the city for his success with the Washington Kastles.[23] He was inducted into the USTA Mid-Atlantic Tennis Hall of Fame in 2012 and received the "Outstanding Public Service in Professional Sports" award by the Jefferson Awards Foundation in 2013.[24][25]

  • Venturehouse Group profile
  • D.C. Policy Center profile

References

  1. BIRTHDAY OF THE DAY: Mark Ein, founder and CEO of Capitol Investment Corp and Venturehouse Group Politico, December 31, 2018, retrieved July 23, 2023^
  2. Mark Ein ATP Tour profile ATP Tour, retrieved July 23, 2023^
  3. David Elfin. Q&A with the Owners of the Philadelphia 76ers, New Jersey Devils and Washington Kastles MoCo360, July 6, 2015, retrieved March 22, 2023^
  4. Dinner and Discussion w/Mark Ein Harvard Club of Washington DC, retrieved July 23, 2023^
  5. Mark Ein - Chairman kastle.com, retrieved July 23, 2023^
  6. Kasra Kangarloo. The many lives of Mark Ein (Video) American City Business Journals, Washington Business Journal, retrieved July 30, 2023^
  7. Carter Lynn. Wharton grad Mark Ein continues to make impact in D.C. sports world The Daily Pennsylvanian, retrieved July 27, 2023^
  8. Aaron Gregg. Local businessman Mark Ein to buy Washington City Paper for undisclosed sum The Washington Post, retrieved July 23, 2023^
  9. Citi Open Spotlight with Mark Ein usta.com, retrieved July 23, 2023^
  10. Jacob Wolf. Sources: Overwatch League to add D.C. and Hangzhou, China, teams ESPN, September 4, 2018, retrieved December 3, 2018^
  11. Leslie Milk. Here Are the Washington Business Hall of Fame Laureates for 2018 Washingtonian, November 19, 2018, retrieved August 7, 2023^
  12. President Biden Announces Key Appointments to Boards and Commissions The White House, February 28, 2023, retrieved July 23, 2023^
  13. Current Members Federal City Council, retrieved August 7, 2023^
  14. Mark Maske, Nicki Jhabvala. NFL owners approve sale of Commanders from Daniel Snyder to Josh Harris The Washington Post, July 20, 2023, retrieved July 21, 2023^
  15. Josh Harris Announces Acquisition of Washington Commanders Washington Commanders, July 21, 2023, retrieved July 21, 2023^
  16. Nicki Jhabvala. The Commanders sale was so complicated, it was 'like 20 deals in one' The Washington Post, July 20, 2023, retrieved July 23, 2023^
  17. Nicki Jhabvala. How Josh Harris's Washington roots inspired him to buy the Commanders The Washington Post, July 23, 2023, retrieved July 23, 2023^
  18. Excited to announce my investment in Leeds United! May 18, 2024, retrieved September 25, 2025^
  19. Aysha Diallo. Baltimore Orioles Sell Minority Stake to Investor Mark Ein Bloomberg, September 25, 2025, retrieved September 25, 2025^
  20. Paul Schwartzman. A tennis team, mansions and now an alt-newsweekly: A tycoon's new project The Washington Post, January 30, 2018, retrieved July 23, 2023^
  21. Elizabeth Williamson. Why Katharine Graham's Washington Home Has Sat Vacant for 22 Years The New York Times, July 23, 2024, retrieved July 25, 2024^
  22. Mark Ein weds Sally Stiebel: An A-list bachelor finally finds his bride The Washington Post, September 22, 2013^
  23. Jacque Bland. Key-sponsored team given key to the city Washington Examiner, August 26, 2009, retrieved July 23, 2023^
  24. Usta Mid-Atlantic Award Winners United States Tennis Association, retrieved July 30, 2023^
  25. Jefferson Awards Announces Strategic Alliance with the NFL Player Engagement, Charles Fazzino and IvyConnect, While Celebrating 41 Years of Honoring Service to Others PRWeb, Jefferson Awards Foundation, June 19, 2013, retrieved July 23, 2023^