It certainly doesn’t hurt your portfolio’s value to own a sports team, especially if it’s in the NFL.
Forbes put together a list of the world’s richest people, and although just five team owners made the top 100, the sports industry definitely isn’t lacking in billionaires. In fact, 63 billionaires own major sports franchises all over the world, and 19 of them have a stake in NFL teams.
New England Patriots (and New England Revolution) owner Robert Kraft is among the bunch, but he comes in as the sixth wealthiest with $4.9 billion. Seattle Seahawks owner Paul Allen leads the pack — he’s the third wealthiest among all sports owners — and earned most of his $17.5 billion starting Microsoft with Bill Gates.
Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross is second with $12 billion, and Los Angeles Rams owner Stan Kroenke, who also owns the Colorado Avalanche, Denver Nuggets, Colorado Rapids and Arsenal FC, rounds out the top three with $7.7 billion. Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shahid Khan ($5.9 billion) and Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones ($5 billion) come fourth and fifth.
After Kraft, the Buffalo Bills’ Terry Pegula ($4 billion), New York Giants’ Joan Tisch ($3.3 billion), Houston Texans’ Bob McNair ($3.3 billion), Baltimore Ravens’ Steve Bisciotti ($3 billion), Atlanta Falcons’ Arthur Blank ($2.6 billion), Indianapolis Colts’ Jim Irsay ($2.3 billion), Cleveland Browns’ Jimmy Haslam ($2.3 billion), New Orleans Saints’ Tom Benson (2.2 billion), Washington Redskins’ Dan Snyder ($2.2 billion), San Francisco 49ers’ Denise York ($1.9 billion), Philadelphia Eagles’ Jeff Lurie ($1.8 billion), San Diego Chargers’ Dean Spanos ($1.7 billion) and Detroit Lions’ Martha Ford ($1.3 billion) finish off the list.
Keep in mind, though, these all are estimates and only include majority shareholders — meaning billionaire families are excluded — so the other 13 NFL owners certainly aren’t hurting financially.
As for the other three major sports, the NBA actually has one more billionaire owner than the NFL does, and Los Angeles Clippers owner and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, whose $23.5 billion leads all sports owners, comes out on top. The NHL has 10 billionaire owners, and Major League Baseball has nine.
Thumbnail photo via Mark J. Rebilas/USA TODAY Sports Images
