Mark David Ein (born December 31, 1964) is an American

venture capitalist Venture capital (VC) is a form of private equity financing provided by firms or funds to startup, early-stage, and emerging companies, that have been deemed to have high growth potential or that have demonstrated high growth in terms of number ...

and sports entrepreneur. He owns the ''

Washington City Paper The ''Washington City Paper'' is a U.S. alternative weekly newspaper serving the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area since 1981. The ''City Paper'' is distributed on Thursdays; its average circulation in 2006 was 85,588. The paper's editorial ...

'' and is a limited partner of the

Washington Commanders The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) East division ...

of the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...

(NFL). Ein earned a degree in economics from the

Wharton School The Wharton School ( ) is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia. Established in 1881 through a donation from Joseph Wharton, a co-founder of Bethlehem Steel, the Wharton ...

at the

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. One of nine colonial colleges, it was chartered in 1755 through the efforts of f ...

in 1987 and an

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a professional degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration; elective courses may allow further study in a particular a ...

from

Harvard Business School Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate school, graduate business school of Harvard University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university. Located in Allston, Massachusetts, HBS owns Harvard Business Publishing, which p ...

(HBS) in 1992. An enthusiast of

tennis Tennis is a List of racket sports, racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles (tennis), singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles (tennis), doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket st ...

, he founded the

World TeamTennis World TeamTennis (WTT) was a mixed-gender professional tennis league played with a team format in the United States, which was founded in 1973. The league's season normally took place in the summer months. Players from the ATP and WTA would ...

(WTT) team

Washington Kastles The Washington Kastles was one of eight franchises that compete in World TeamTennis. Founded in 2008 and based in Washington, D.C., the Kastles won the WTT championship six times, tied for a league record. The team was named for Kastle Systems, ...

in 2008 and has chaired the DC Open tournament since 2019. Ein also serves as chairman of the

President's Export Council The President's Export Council (PEC) is an American government organization that serves as the principal national advisory committee on international trade. The Council advises the president of the United States on policies and programs that affect ...

and is a member of the

Federal City Council Federal City Council is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that promotes economic development in the city of Washington, D.C., in the United States. Incorporated on September 13, 1954, it is one of the most powerful private groups in the city, a ...

World Economic Forum The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental organization, international advocacy non-governmental organization and think tank, based in Cologny, Canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German ...

, and

Gridiron Club The Gridiron Club is the oldest and most selective journalistic organization in Washington, D.C. History :"an elitist social club of sixty print journalists" — Hedrick Smith, ''Power Game: How Washington Works'' February 1988 Random House ...

Early life

Ein was born on December 31, 1964, in

Chevy Chase, Maryland Chevy Chase () is the colloquial name of an area that includes a town, several incorporated villages, and an unincorporated census-designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland; and one adjoining neighborhood in northwest Washington, D ...

. He earned a degree in economics from the

in 1987 and an

from

in 1992. Ein is a member of the

Phi Delta Theta Phi Delta Theta (), commonly known as Phi Delt, is an international secret and social Fraternities and sororities in North America, fraternity founded in 1848, and currently headquartered, at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. Phi Delta Theta, alo ...

fraternity.

Career

Ein worked for

The Carlyle Group The Carlyle Group Inc. is an American multinational company with operations in private equity, alternative asset management and financial services. As of 2023, the company had $426 billion of assets under management. Carlyle specializes in ...

Brentwood Associates Brentwood Associates is a private equity firm in the US with groups focusing on leveraged buyout. The firm, which is based in Los Angeles, was founded in 1972. Their most recent fund was a $1.15bn fund raised in 2017. The venture capital group ...

, and

Goldman Sachs The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational investment bank and financial services company. Founded in 1869, Goldman Sachs is headquartered in Lower Manhattan in New York City, with regional headquarters in many internationa ...

before founding Venturehouse Group in 1999. A lifelong enthusiast of

, Ein founded the

(WTT) in 2008 and is a board member of the

United States Tennis Association The United States Tennis Association (USTA) is the national governing body for tennis in the United States. A not-for-profit organization with more than 700,000 members, it invests 100% of its proceeds to promote and develop the growth of tenn ...

(USTA). He earned an

ATP ranking The PIF ATP Rankings (previously known as the Pepperstone ATP Rankings) are the merit-based method used by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) for determining the qualification for entry as well as the seeding of players in all single ...

of 1098 at age 46 after playing in a few ATP

doubles tennis Men's doubles, Women's doubles or Mixed doubles are sports having two players per side, including; * Beach volleyball * Doubles badminton * Doubles curling * Footvolley * Doubles pickleball * Doubles squash * Doubles table tennis * Doubles ...

tournaments. Ein bought the ''

'' in 2017 and became chairman and CEO of the DC Open tennis tournament in 2019. He is the chairman of the board for Kastle Systems, a security company, and CEO of Capitol Investment Corp. Ein founded the

Washington Justice Washington Justice is an American professional ''Overwatch'' esports team based in Washington, D.C. The Justice compete in the Overwatch League (OWL) as member of the league's West region. Founded in 2018, Washington Justice began play as on ...

of the esports

Overwatch League The Overwatch League (OWL) was a professional esports league for the video game ''Overwatch'', produced by its developer, Blizzard Entertainment. From 2018 to 2023, the Overwatch League followed the model of other traditional North American prof ...

in 2018. Ein became a Washington Business Hall of Fame laureate in 2018. In 2023, president

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

appointed Ein to chair the

, a group within the

International Trade Administration The International Trade Administration (ITA) is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that promotes United States exports of nonagricultural U.S. goods and services. Duties The ITA's stated goals are to # Provide practical info ...

that serves as a national trade advisory committee. He is also a member of the

, and the

. The same year, he was a part of an investment group led by Josh Harris that bought the

of the

(NFL) for $6.05 billion. 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 Wall Street is a street in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs eight city blocks between Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway in the west and South Street (Manhattan), South Str ...

Personal life

Ein is

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

; his mother is a

Holocaust survivor Holocaust survivors are people who survived the Holocaust, defined as the persecution and attempted annihilation of the Jews by Nazi Germany and Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, its collaborators before and during World War II ...

. He was an executive producer of the 2008 documentary film '' Kicking It''. In 2001, he purchased the home of

Katharine Graham Katharine Meyer Graham (June 16, 1917 – July 17, 2001) was an American newspaper publisher. She led her family's newspaper, ''The Washington Post'', from 1963 to 1991. Graham presided over the paper as it reported on the Watergate scandal, wh ...

in the Georgetown district of

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

for $8 million following her death. He never resided in it and put up for sale in 2024. Ein married Sally Stiebel in September 2013. The wedding included a live performance of Y.M.C.A. by the

Village People Village People is an American disco group known for its on-stage costumes and suggestive lyrics in their music. The group was originally formed by French producers Jacques Morali and Henri Belolo and lead singer Victor Willis following the re ...

and was attended by over 350 guests, including

Mark Warner Mark Robert Warner (born December 15, 1954) is an American businessman and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Virginia, a seat he has held since 2009. A member of the Democratic Party, Warner served as the 69th gove ...

Ted Leonsis Theodore John Leonsis (born January 8, 1957) is an American businessman. He is a former senior executive with America Online (AOL) and the founder, chairman, and CEO of Monumental Sports & Entertainment, which owns the NHL's Washington Capitals, ...

, Raul Fernandez,

Vernon Jordan Vernon Eulion Jordan Jr. (August 15, 1935 – March 1, 2021) was an American business executive and civil rights attorney who worked for various civil rights movement organizations before becoming a close advisor to President Bill Clinton. Jo ...

Valerie Jarrett Valerie June Jarrett ( Bowman; born November 14, 1956) is an American businesswoman and former government official, who has been the chief executive officer of the Obama Foundation since 2021. She was the longest-serving senior advisor to U.S. Pr ...

, Debra Lee,

Gene Sperling Eugene Benton Sperling (born December 24, 1958) is an American lawyer who was director of the National Economic Council and assistant to the president for economic policy under Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama. He is the only person to ...

Larry Summers Lawrence Henry Summers (born November 30, 1954) is an American economist who served as United States Secretary of the Treasury from 1999 to 2001 and as the director of the National Economic Council from 2009 to 2010. He also served as presiden ...

, David Bradley,

Adrian Fenty Adrian Malik Fenty (born December 6, 1970) is an American politician who served as the mayor of the District of Columbia from 2007 to 2011. A Washington, D.C. native, Fenty graduated from Oberlin College and Howard University Law School, then ser ...

, Jack Evans,

Murphy Jensen Murphy Jensen (born October 30, 1968) is an American former professional tennis player and Grand Slam doubles champion. He is the younger brother of former professional tennis player Luke Jensen, with whom he teamed to win the 1993 French Open ...

Sam Kass Samuel David Kass (born 1980) is an American political advisor, chef, and news personality, who served as President Barack Obama's Senior Policy Advisor for Nutrition Policy, executive director for First Lady Michelle Obama's Let's Move! campai ...

, Capricia Marshall, and

Mitchell Rales Mitchell P. Rales (born August 1956) is an American businessman and art curator. He co-founded Danaher Corporation with his brother Steven Rales in 1984 and the art museum Glenstone with his wife Emily Wei in 2006. Rales is also the chairman of ...

. They spent their

honeymoon A honeymoon is a vacation taken by newlyweds after their wedding to celebrate their marriage. Today, honeymoons are often celebrated in destinations considered exotic or romantic. In a similar context, it may also refer to the phase in a couple ...

Lake Como Lake Como ( , ) also known as Lario, is a lake of glacial origin in Lombardy, Italy. It has an area of , making it the third-largest lake in Italy, after Lake Garda and Lake Maggiore. At over deep, it is one of the deepest lakes in Europe. ...

in Italy and reside in Georgetown. In 2009, D.C. mayor

presented Ein with the key to the city for his success with the Washington Kastles. He was inducted into the

USTA The United States Tennis Association (USTA) is the national Sport governing body, governing body for tennis in the United States. A not-for-profit organization with more than 700,000 members, it invests 100% of its proceeds to promote and devel ...

Mid-Atlantic Tennis Hall of Fame in 2012 and received the "Outstanding Public Service in Professional Sports" award by the

Jefferson Awards Foundation The Jefferson Awards Foundation was created in 1972 by the American Institute for Public Service. The Jefferson Awards are given at both local and national levels. Local winners are ordinary people who do extraordinary things without expectation ...

in 2013.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ein, Mark 1964 births 20th-century American businesspeople 20th-century American Jews 20th-century American sportsmen 21st-century American businesspeople 21st-century American Jews 21st-century American philanthropists 21st-century American sportsmen American business executives American chairpersons of corporations American chief executives of professional sports organizations American company founders American financial company founders American male tennis players American newspaper executives American sports executives and administrators American venture capitalists Businesspeople from Washington, D.C. The Carlyle Group people Esports team owners Goldman Sachs people Harvard Business School alumni Jewish American sports executives and administrators Jewish American tennis players Jews from Washington, D.C. Living people People from Chevy Chase, Maryland Philanthropists from Washington, D.C. Tennis executives Tennis players from Washington, D.C. Washington Commanders owners Washington Justice Wharton School alumni World TeamTennis owners