NFL owners, from oldest to youngest

You know Paul Brown? The guy the Cleveland Browns are named after? He went on to found the Cincinnati Bengals, and Mike is his son. Mike has owned the Bengals since his father died, and he also installed himself as general manager. It’s a role he still has, for all intents and purposes, even if he has ceded some responsibilities as he’s gotten older.

Ross is a Detroit native, and he went to college at the University of Michigan, a school that he has poured a ton of money into. However, it’s the Miami Dolphins where he staked his money, perhaps because the Lions weren’t for sale. Ross’ ties to the Wolverines have led to multiple rumors over the years that Jim Harbaugh will someday coach the Dolphins if and when he returns to the NFL.

If you were wondering, no, Kraft didn’t get his money from Kraft Foods. He made his billions in that convoluted way a lot of people do where they have money in real estate and private equity and all that stuff. He’s a hero in New England, and not just for the success the Patriots have had over the last 20 years. When Kraft bought the team, he basically kept it from moving cities.

If you follow football at all, you know Jones. He’s made himself one of the prominent faces of the NFL. He’s not just the owner of the Dallas Cowboys, but he’s also served as their GM for years. For decades, Jones has helped shape the NFL, for better or worse.

Blank co-founded Home Depot, which helped make him quite the wealthy man. He’s owned the Atlanta Falcons since 2002, and he’s often seen on the sidelines during games. Blank combines the enthusiasm of Jones with a little less egomania over his ability to run a football team. He also owns Atlanta United of MLS, which won the league title in its second season.

After Pat Bowlen died in 2019, the circumstances of the future of the Denver Broncos was thrown up in the air. Eventually, a new owner was found. Walton headed a group that paid a whopping $4.65 billion for the Broncos. Of course, when you are the son of the founder of Walmart, what do you care when it comes to a couple billion?

Tom “Boogie” Benson was a key figure in New Orleans sports. He helped keep the Saints in town after Hurricane Katrina and then brought it the New Orleans Pelicans, nee Hornets, as well. However, Benson died in 2018. His wife, Gayle, inherited both the Saints and the Pelicans upon his death, making her an owner in two sports.

Kroenke owns a ton of land and real estate. He’s also married to Ann Walton, an heiress of the Walmart fortune. Kroenke owns the Los Angeles Rams, and he previously owned the Colorado Avalanche and Denver Nuggets. However, NFL laws wouldn’t allow him to own the Avs and Nuggets if he wanted to own the Rams. It must have been tough for him to part with those teams, which he sold to…his wife.

With around $8 billion to his name, Khan is the richest person of Pakistani origin in the world. He owns Fulham in English soccer, is a co-founder of the wrestling organization AEW and, germane to this article, is the owner of the Jacksonville Jaguars. You know how the Jags play in London every year? Khan is a big reason for that. He also has an impressive mustache.

Wilf, who was born in Germany, turned his family’s real estate business into a gigantic success, making himself a billionaire in the process. He then used that money to buy the Minnesota Vikings. Unfortunately for Wilf, he took over as owner right before the infamous “party boat” scandal in 2005. 

Alex Spanos, a real estate developer, bought the then-San Diego Chargers in 1984. He owned the team until he died in 2018. Now his son Dean is the principal owner. Also, the team is now in Los Angeles. At least Alex lived to see that come to fruition.

Pegula bought the Bills in 2014, and the team has seen a lot of success under his ownership, though they haven't gotten over the hump and gotten back to the Super Bowl. He also bought the Sabres in 2011, and the Sabres have the longest playoff drought in the four major American sports leagues. The lack of hockey success is a bit surprising, as Pegula clearly loves the sport and has basically financed Penn State's hockey program himself.

Lurie does more than just look like Lorne Michaels. He’s also the owner of the Philadelphia Eagles. Lurie actually has a doctorate in social policy and worked as an assistant adjunct professor for a time. Then he got into business and became a billionaire, and now he has a Super Bowl ring.

Woody Johnson is one of the great-grandsons of one of the founders of Johnson & Johnson, so that's some trickling-down old money for you right there. He, alongside his brother Christopher, bought the Jets in 2000, but Woody has largely been the principal owner. The only time that wasn't the case when when he served as ambassador to the United Kingdom under Donald Trump. Sure, he didn't earn that position, but he also didn't earn the money he inherited so it's all par for the course. 

Hamp recently took over as the principal owner of the Detroit Lions from her mother Martha Firestone Ford. Given that the elder Ford is in her nineties, that's understandable. Hamp had been the vice chairperson of the team since 2014 and has been involved in team decisions for years. Now, the team is hers.

Much like John Mara, Rooney II is NFL royalty. His grandfather Art Rooney Sr. founded the Steelers in 1933. He passed the team on to his son Dan, who passed it on to the younger Art Rooney. Also, like Mara, Rooney II is the uncle of Rooney and Kate Mara.

Haslam is a truck stop magnate who's Pilot Flying J chain has, shall we say, not always avoided legal hot water. That hasn't kept him from having enough money to own the Cleveland Browns. Decisions made related to the Browns under Haslam's ownership haven't always worked out, though, and the franchise has found limited success. The Columbus Crew have done well in the MLS, though. 

The Giants have been handed down to two families, the Maras and the Tisches. Steve Tisch is the VP and board chairman. John Mara, though, gets to the the principal owner. John's grandfather Tim founded the franchise back in 1925. If you were wondering, Kate and Rooney are his nieces. 

Bud Adams, founder of the Houston Oilers, was vital in creating the American Football League. He then moved his team to Tennessee and renamed it the Titans. When Bud died in 2013, initially his two daughters and the widow of his late son each got a third of the team. Susie Adams Smith was the de facto controlling owner, but turmoil led to Amy Adams Strunk taking over. Smith sold her shares in 2017, and Strunk is safely ensconced as owner for now.

The Bears have been a family business since the beginning George Halas was the found, owner, and one-time head coach of the franchise, and then he passed the team on to his daughter Virginia Halas McCaskey. She owned the team for a long time, because she didn't die until she was 102. Somebody was really clinging to NFL ownership! Now, much like how Charles finally got to be king when Elizabeth II gave up the ghost, George gets to take over the franchise his grandfather founded. 

Jerry Richardson, who owned the Carolina Panthers, was the only owner in the NFL to have played in the league. He was also a problematic figure, which helped expedite the process of him selling the team. Tepper, a hedge fund manager, stepped right in to bid $2.2 billion on the team, a record price. He can afford it. Tepper is worth a reported $11.6 billion. Once he gave his alma mater, Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, $67 million. The dude likes to splash his cash.

Allen finds herself in the position of owning the Seahawks for somewhat complicated reasons. Seattle’s football franchise was owned by Paul Allen, Jody’s brother, until his death in 2018. Jody is the executor of Paul’s estate, which means she has taken control of the Seahawks as well as the Portland Trail Blazers of the NBA. While it seems for a while like Allen might try to find a new owner for one or both franchises, she's held onto them.

Al Davis was the legendary face of the Raiders for many years, and when he died his widow Carol and his son Mark took over the franchise. Carol has since passed away as well, leaving Mark in charge. Al moved the team around in his day, and Mark followed in his footsteps by moving the Raiders to Las Vegas.

Art Modell, who famously moved the Browns from Cleveland to Baltimore, renaming them the Ravens, turned himself into a bit of a villain in the process. There are likely no hard feelings in Cleveland for Bisciotti, who bought the team from Modell in 2004. Well, first he got 49 percent of the team in 2000, and then in 2004 he got the rest of the ownership stakes from Modell. Bisciotti made his money co-founding Aerotek.

Billionaires love nepotism, and billionaires own pro sports franchises, so there's a lot of NFL team owners that were left the teams by their billionaire parents/grandparents. Cal McNair is one of those. Bob McNair hired his son in his moneymaking line of work, and then when he was given the Houston Texans as an expansion franchise Bob hired Cal as well. When Bob died, the team was left to his wide Janice, and when Janice died, the team became Cal's.

You know the drill. Malcolm Glazer bought the Buccaneers in 1995, and would eventually buy the controlling share of Manchester United as well. When he died in 2014, his sons took over ownership of both franchises. This is about the Bucs, though, not Man U. Bryan is focused on the Bucs, having been the VP since 1995 and now the principal owner.

Michael's father, Bill, owned the Cardinals from 1972 until his death in 2019. At the time of his death, Bidwell was the longest-tenured owner in the league. Now, that role belongs to his son. Bidwell was already heavily involved in the team before that, of course, given that his father was in his eighties. Now the Cards have one of the younger owners in the league.

The tyranny of Dan Snyder ended in Washington when Harris bought the franchise in 2023. At that point, he and his consortium already owner the Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils. While Snyder was the one who okayed (in his case, relented) to the Commanders rebranding, the rebirth of the franchise really began with Harris' ownership

Lamar Hunt, who was from an oil family, founded the Kansas City Chiefs and then the Dallas Texans. He was a founding member of the AFL and reportedly came up with the name “Super Bowl.” He also was vital to the founding of the MLS and owned three different MLS franchises in his life. When Lamar died in 2006, his son Clark took over as the primary owner.

We have to throw an asterisk on this one. The Packers are, famously, the only publicly owned major sports franchise in the United States. Stockholders, of which there are many, own small shares of the team. This is no longer possible in the NFL, but the Packers were grandfathered in. For the purposes of this list, Ed Policy is the team's current CEO and president, so he's the representative here. 

The family ownership of the 49ers has now trickled down to York. Eddie DeBartolo Sr. passed it on to Eddie Jr. who passed it on to his daughter Denise and her husband John. Jed's parents made him the team's CEO in 2008, and eventually John stepped away and Jed finagled enough of his mom's percentage of the company to become the principal owner.

Carlie father Jim became the NFL's youngest owner when he gained control of the Colts franchise after his father Robert died. Jim was one of the NFL's most-boisterous owners, but he passed away in 2025. "King Lear" style, his three daughters got portions of ownership, but eldest daughter Carlie is now the principal owner.