After the Gold Rush: The $75M Operation behind America's Hockey Champions
From FP&A Today by Glenn Hopper
February 23, 2026 · 48 min · Episode 196
About this episode
Kelly Mahncke, CFO of USA Hockey, discusses the financial operations behind the gold-winning national hockey program.
The history-making USA Hockey won golds (and millions of fans in the process) at Milan’s Olympic Games. But behind the on-ice glory is a $75 million organization with a finance function as disciplined as its players. Kelly Mahncke , CFO of USA Hockey, joins Glenn Hopper and FP&A Today to pull back the curtain on what it takes to fund the gold-winning national hockey program — with business interests from memberships and sponsorships to restaurants and insurance. Kelly traces her own journey from center ice to chasing the bottom line, explaining how a hockey career shaped her instincts as a finance leader. She walks us through four-year "quad budgets" and the typical annual cycle, and what it took to weather COVID's financial shock, from cash management to the logistical nightmare of paused travel programs. She also gets into the digital transformation underway at USA Hockey. And why she believes curiosity is the defining trait of great FP&A professionals. Catch this fascinating look at finance leadership — at the peak of Hockey USA's Olympic moment.
People in this episode
Host: Glenn Hopper
Guest: Kelly Mahncke
Topics covered
- finance leadership
- USA Hockey
- Olympic success
- budgeting
- digital transformation
Keywords
- USA Hockey
- CFO
- finance
- Olympics
- budgeting
- COVID impact
- digital transformation
- sports management
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: USA Hockey
Places: Milan
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