List of professional sports team owners

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This is a list of individuals, groups of individuals, and companies who have owned and operated a professional sports organization. The list is organized first by sport, then by franchise or team, then by Owner. If an organization has gone through a significant change (e.g. the team has moved and/or changed names), that information is noted after the years of ownership.

Contents

Association football club owners [edit]

England [edit]

Premier League owners [edit]

Arsenal
Aston Villa
  • Owned by a large number of shareholders until 1968. Since that time:
  • Doug Ellis (largest single shareholder 1968–1975; majority shareholder 1982–2006)
  • Randy Lerner (2006–present)
Chelsea
Everton
Fulham
Liverpool
Manchester City
Manchester United
Newcastle United
Stoke City
Sunderland
Tottenham Hotspur
West Ham United
Wigan Athletic

Football League Championship owners [edit]

Middlesbrough
  • Steve Gibson (1986–1993 as head of consortium; 1993–present as majority owner)
Newcastle United
Reading

Major League Soccer owners [edit]

Chicago Fire
Chivas USA
Colorado Rapids
Columbus Crew
D.C. United
FC Dallas
Houston Dynamo
Los Angeles Galaxy
Montreal Impact
New England Revolution
New York Red Bulls
Philadelphia Union
Portland Timbers
Real Salt Lake
San Jose Earthquakes
Seattle Sounders FC
Sporting Kansas City
Toronto FC
Vancouver Whitecaps FC

Italian Serie A owners [edit]

Fiorentina
Internazionale
Milan
Napoli
Roma
Sampdoria
Torino

Greek Superleague owners [edit]

Olympiacos Piraeus
Panathinaikos FC
Panionios

Auto racing owners & team principals [edit]

Formula One team principals [edit]

(Listed by Constructor)

BMW Sauber
Ferrari
Force India-Ferrari
Honda
McLaren-Mercedes
Mercedes Grand Prix
Red Bull-Renault
Renault
Toro Rosso-Ferrari
Super Aguri-Honda
Toyota
Williams-Toyota

NASCAR Sprint Cup team owners [edit]

BAM Racing currently on hiatus
Chip Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates merger with Dale Earnhardt Inc.
Dale Earnhardt Inc. merger with Chip Ganassi Racing
Earnhardt Ganassi Racing with Felix Sabates
Gillett Evernham Motorsports merger with Petty Enterprises in 2009
Front Row Motorsports
Furniture Row Racing
Haas CNC Racing 50% business interest with Tony Stewart
Hendrick Motorsports
Joe Gibbs Racing
Michael Waltrip Racing
Morgan-McClure Motorsports currently on hiatus
Penske Racing
Petty Enterprises merged with Gillett Evernham Motorsports
Richard Childress Racing
Richard Petty Motorsports
Robby Gordon Motorsports
Roush Fenway Racing
Stewart Haas Racing
Team Red Bull
Wood Brothers Racing
Yates Racing merged car No. 98 with Richard Petty Motorsports

Baseball franchise owners [edit]

Major League Baseball owners [edit]

Arizona Diamondbacks
Atlanta Braves
Baltimore Orioles
Boston Red Sox
Chicago Cubs
Chicago White Sox
Cincinnati Reds
Cleveland Indians
Colorado Rockies
Detroit Tigers
Houston Astros
Kansas City Royals
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Los Angeles Dodgers
Miami Marlins
Milwaukee Brewers
Minnesota Twins
New York Mets
New York Yankees
Oakland Athletics
Philadelphia Phillies
Pittsburgh Pirates
San Diego Padres
San Francisco Giants
Seattle Mariners
St. Louis Cardinals
Tampa Bay Rays
Texas Rangers
Toronto Blue Jays
Washington Nationals

Nippon Professional Baseball owners [edit]

In Japanese baseball, teams are traditionally owned by companies and bear that company's name. Only one team in recent years has not borne a corporate name—the Yokohama BayStars went without a corporate name from 1993 through 2011 because its owner chose not to attach its name to the team. The company identifier is indicated in bold type in the owner list.

Chiba Lotte Marines
Chunichi Dragons
Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks
Hanshin Tigers
Hiroshima Toyo Carp
  • Matsuda family (the founding family of Mazda — about 60%); Mazda (34.2%); other minority shareholders
    • The "Toyo" name comes from the former corporate name of Mazda, Toyo Kogyo.
Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters
  • Senators (1946) – Did not use a corporate name. Owned by retired Japanese statesman Kinkazu Saionji.
  • Tokyu Flyers (1947) – Tokyu Corporation (100%)
  • Kyuei Flyers (1948) – Tokyu and Daiei (50-50)
  • Tokyu Flyers (1949–1953) – Tokyu (100%)
  • Toei Flyers (1954–1972) – Toei Company
  • Nittaku Home Flyers (1973) – Not directly owned by a corporation, but bore a corporate name nonetheless. The team was owned that season by Akitaka Nishimura, owner of Nittaku Home.
  • Nippon-Ham Fighters (1974–2003), Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters (2004–present) – Nippon Ham
Orix Buffaloes
Saitama Seibu Lions
Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles
Tokyo Yakult Swallows
  • Kokutetsu Swallows (1950–1965) – Japanese National Railways, known as Kokutetsu in Japanese
  • Sankei Swallows (brief period in 1965) – Sankei Shimbun
  • Sankei Atoms (1965–1968) – Sankei Shimbun
  • Atoms (1969) – Sankei Shimbun (chose to drop its corporate name from the team)
  • Yakult Atoms (1970–1973), Yakult Swallows (1974–2005), Tokyo Yakult Swallows (2006–present) – Yakult
Yokohama DeNA BayStars
  • Taiyō Whales (1950–52) – Taiyō Fishing Company (100%)
  • Taiyō-Shōchiku Robins (1953) – Taiyō and Shōchiku (50-50)
  • Yō-Shō Robins (1954) – Tai and Shōchiku (50-50)
  • Taiyō Whales (1954–1977), Yokohama Taiyō Whales (1978–1992) – Taiyō (100%)
  • Yokohama BayStars (1993–2011) – Taiyō changed its name to Maruha Corporation, and chose to drop its corporate name from the team.
  • Yokohama DeNA BayStars (2012–present) – DeNA
Yomiuri Giants

Basketball team owners [edit]

National Basketball Association owners [edit]

Atlanta Hawks
Boston Celtics
Brooklyn Nets
Charlotte Bobcats
Chicago Bulls
Cleveland Cavaliers
Dallas Mavericks
Denver Nuggets
  • Red McCombs (1978-1985)
  • Sidney Shlenker (1985-1989)
  • Peter Bynoe, Bertram Lee, and Comsat Video Enterprises (1989-1997)
  • Liberty Media (1997-2000)
  • Stan Kroenke (2000-present)
    • Kroenke, previously a minority owner of the NFL's St. Louis Rams, acquired full ownership in 2010. Under the NFL's cross-ownership rules, principal team owners are prohibited from owning teams in any other professional sport (except soccer) in a different NFL market. In keeping with NFL rules, he transferred operational control to his son Josh Kroenke in late 2010, and has until December 2014 to divest his interest in the Nuggets.
Detroit Pistons
Golden State Warriors
Houston Rockets
Indiana Pacers
Los Angeles Clippers
Los Angeles Lakers
Memphis Grizzlies
Miami Heat
Milwaukee Bucks
  • Milwaukee Professional Sports and Services, Inc. (aka Milwaukee Pro), headed by Wesley Pavalon and Marvin Fishman (1968–76)
  • Jim Fitzgerald (principal owner, 1976–85)
  • U.S. Senator Herb Kohl (1985–present)
Minnesota Timberwolves
New Orleans Pelicans
  • George Shinn (100%, 1988–2007; Charlotte/New Orleans Hornets)
  • Shinn (75%) and Gary Chouest (25%) (2007–2010)
  • National Basketball Association (2010–2012) — The NBA purchased the team in December 2010 after a planned sale of Shinn's interest to Chouest fell through.
  • Tom Benson (2012–present)[8]
    • Benson is also the owner of the NFL's New Orleans Saints. The NFL's current ownership rules allow NFL team owners to own teams in other sports if the other team(s) are in the same media market. In 2013, Benson announced that the New Orleans Hornets would permanently change their team nickname to the Pelicans.
New York Knicks
Oklahoma City Thunder
Orlando Magic
Philadelphia 76ers
Phoenix Suns
Portland Trail Blazers
  • Herman Sarkowsky, Robert Schmertz, and Larry Weinberg (1970–1972)
  • Herman Sarkowsky & Larry Weinberg (1972–1975)
  • Larry Weinberg (1975–1988)
  • Paul Allen (1988–present)
    • Allen is the principal owner of the NFL's Seattle Seahawks. At the time he purchased the Seahawks in 1997, the NFL had a blanket prohibition of cross-ownership (apart from soccer), but the league soon modified the rule to allow NFL owners to own teams in other leagues under either of the following conditions:
      • The other team is in the same market as the owner's NFL team.
      • The other team is in a market without an NFL team, as is the case with Portland.
Sacramento Kings
  • Gregg Lukenbill and Joe Benvenuti (1985-1992)
  • Jim Thomas (1992-1999)
  • Maloof family (53%), Bob Hernreich (12%), and other minority investors (operated by George, Joe and Gavin Maloof) (1999-2013)
    • Sale of the Maloof and Hernreich interests to a group led by Chris Hansen and Steve Ballmer pending as of January 2013. If approved, the team will be moved to Seattle and assume the SuperSonics name.
San Antonio Spurs
Toronto Raptors
Utah Jazz
  • Sam Battistone (1974–1985), New Orleans/Utah Jazz
  • Battistone and Larry Miller (50-50, 1985–1986)
  • Miller (100%, 1986–2009)
  • Greg and Gail Miller (2009–present)
Washington Wizards
  • David Trager (1961–1964) — Chicago Packers/Zephyrs, Baltimore Bullets
  • Abe Pollin (majority owner), Earl Foreman, Arnold Heft (1964–68) — Baltimore Bullets
  • Pollin (100%, 1968–1999) — Baltimore/Capital/Washington Bullets, Washington Wizards
  • Pollin (56%) and Ted Leonsis (44%) (1999–2009)
  • Estate of Abe Pollin and Ted Leonsis (2009–2010)
  • Ted Leonsis (2010–present)

Gridiron football franchise owners [edit]

National Football League owners [edit]

Arizona Cardinals
  • Chris O'Brien (1898–1929) — Morgan Athletic Club (Chicago, 1898–1899?), Racine Normals (still in Chicago, 1899?–1901), Racine Cardinals (1901–1921), Chicago Cardinals (1922–1959)
  • Dr. David Jones (1929–1933)
  • Charles Bidwill (1933–1947)
  • Violet Bidwill, later Violet Bidwill Wolfner (1947–1962) — Chicago/St. Louis Cardinals
  • Bill Bidwill and Charles Bidwill, Jr. (1962–1972)
  • Bill Bidwill (1972–present) — St. Louis/Arizona Cardinals
Atlanta Falcons
Baltimore Ravens
Buffalo Bills
Carolina Panthers
Chicago Bears
Cincinnati Bengals
Cleveland Browns
Dallas Cowboys
Denver Broncos
Detroit Lions
  • George A. Richards (1934–1940)
  • Fred Mandel (1940–1948)
  • Edwin J. Anderson (1948–1964)
  • William Clay Ford, Sr. (1964–present)
Green Bay Packers
Houston Texans
Indianapolis Colts
Jacksonville Jaguars
Kansas City Chiefs
  • Lamar Hunt (1960–2006) — Dallas Texans/Kansas City Chiefs
  • Hunt family, led by Clark Hunt (2006–present)
Miami Dolphins
Minnesota Vikings
New England Patriots
New Orleans Saints
New York Giants
  • The Mara Family (1925–present; 100 percent ownership, 1925–1991, 50 percent ownership since 1991)
  • The Tisch Family (1991–present; 50 percent ownership)
New York Jets
Oakland Raiders
  • Limited partnership led by Y. Charles (Chet) Soda (1960)
  • F. Wayne Valley and Ed McGah (1961–1966)
  • Valley, McGah and Al Davis (1966–1976)
  • Al Davis and McGah (1976–1983) - Oakland/Los Angeles Raiders
  • Al Davis (1983–2011) — Los Angeles/Oakland Raiders
  • Mark and Carol Davis (2011–present)

Note: This list reflects the actual control of the franchise. The ownership structure is considerably more complicated. Notably, it was reported that Al Davis owned only a 47% stake in the team when he died in 2011, although he exercised near-total control as the president of the team's general partner. His widow Carol and son Mark inherited his interest in the team, with Mark exercising day-to-day control. See the relevant section of the team article for more details.

Philadelphia Eagles
Pittsburgh Steelers
St. Louis Rams
San Diego Chargers
San Francisco 49ers
  • Tony Morabito, Victor Morabito, Allen E. Sorrell and E.J. Turre (1946)
  • Tony and Victor Morabito (1947–1953)
  • Morabito, Morabito, and Al Ruffo (1953–1957)
  • Josephine Morabito, Victor Morabito, and Ruffo (1957–1964)
  • Josephine Morabito, Elizabeth Morabito, and Ruffo (1964–1977)
  • Eddie DeBartolo, Jr. and Denise DeBartolo York (1977–2000)
  • Denise DeBartolo York and John York (2000–present)
Seattle Seahawks
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tennessee Titans
  • Bud Adams (1960–present) — Houston/Tennessee Oilers, Tennessee Titans
Washington Redskins

Canadian Football League owners [edit]

Hockey franchise owners [edit]

National Hockey League owners [edit]

Anaheim Ducks
Boston Bruins
Buffalo Sabres
Calgary Flames
Carolina Hurricanes
Chicago Blackhawks
Colorado Avalanche
  • Charlie Lyons – 1995–2000
  • E. Stanley Kroenke – 2000–present
    • As noted in the NBA section, Kroenke must now divest his interest in the Avalanche by December 2014 under NFL rules, as he became the full owner of the St. Louis Rams in 2010. As with the Nuggets, he transferred operational control of the Avalanche to his son Josh Kroenke in late 2010.
Columbus Blue Jackets
Dallas Stars
Detroit Red Wings
Edmonton Oilers
Florida Panthers
Los Angeles Kings
Minnesota Wild
Montreal Canadiens
Nashville Predators
New Jersey Devils
New York Islanders
New York Rangers
Ottawa Senators
Philadelphia Flyers
Phoenix Coyotes
Pittsburgh Penguins
San Jose Sharks
St. Louis Blues
  • Sid Salomon, Jr., Sid Salomon III, and Robert Wolfson – 1967–1977
  • Ralston Purina – 1977–1983
  • Harry Ornest – 1983–1986
  • Michael Shanahan, Sr. – 1986–1999
  • Bill Laurie and Nancy Walton Laurie – 1999–2005
  • Dave Checketts – 2005–present
Tampa Bay Lightning
Toronto Maple Leafs
Vancouver Canucks
Washington Capitals
Winnipeg Jets

Rugby union club owners [edit]

Aviva Premiership (England) [edit]

Bath
Gloucester
  • Owned by a large number of investors until 1997
  • Tom Walkinshaw (1997–2010)
  • Ryan Walkinshaw (December 2010–present)
London Wasps
Newcastle Falcons
  • John Hall (1996–1999)
  • Dave Thompson (1999–present)

RaboDirect Pro12 [edit]

Aironi (operated from 2010–12; now defunct)
Benetton Treviso
Cardiff Blues
Connacht, Leinster, Munster and Ulster
  • All are owned and operated by the respective provincial branches of the Irish Rugby Football Union, the sport's governing body throughout the island of Ireland.
Newport Gwent Dragons
Ospreys
Scarlets
Zebre (took Aironi's place in the league in 2012)

Top 14 (France) [edit]

Brive
  • Daniel Derichebourg[15]
    • Derichebourg has put the club up for sale.
Perpignan
Racing Métro
  • Jacky Lorenzetti[16]
Stade Français
  • Max Guazzini (majority owner, 1992–June 2011); unknown percentage also owned by Christophe Dominici in the last years of Guazzini's ownership
  • Jean-Pierre Savare (majority owner, June 2011–)[17]
Toulon

References [edit]

  1. ^ "Aaron Cushman". http://media.illinois.edu. Retrieved 2011-03-01. 
  2. ^ Futterman, Matthew (March 29, 2012). "$2 Billion Dodgers Price Tag Shatters Records". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved April 15, 2012. 
  3. ^ "Yankees Timeline". Major League Baseball. Retrieved 2007-06-18. "May 21, 1922: Col. Ruppert buys out Col. Huston for $1.5 million." 
  4. ^ "Celtics' owner dispute is more confused than ever". The Tuscaloosa News. July 22, 1974. Retrieved 2010-03-14. 
  5. ^ "New Owner But Red Is Still Boss of Celts". Lewiston Evening Journal. Jan 14, 1975. Retrieved 2010-03-14. 
  6. ^ a b "Magic Johnson sells Lakers shares". ESPN.com. 2010-10-18. Retrieved 2010-10-19. 
  7. ^ Shelburne, Ramona (February 19, 2013). "Jerry Buss: A true sports visionary". ESPNLosAngeles.com. Retrieved February 21, 2013. 
  8. ^ "Tom Benson agrees to buy Hornets". ESPN.com. April 14, 2012. Retrieved April 15, 2012. 
  9. ^ Yasinskas, Pat (2009-12-17). "Dunn to own piece of Falcons". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2009-12-17. 
  10. ^ Rosenthal, Gregg (August 2, 2012). "Cleveland Browns' sale to Jimmy Haslam complete". Around the League. National Football League. Retrieved August 20, 2012. 
  11. ^ http://www.planetrugby.com/story/0,25883,16024_6010504,00.html
  12. ^ http://rugby1823.blogosfere.it/2010/06/super-10-e-alla-fine-fu-granducato-parma-rugby.html
  13. ^ http://www.sportparma.com/rugby_sport_parma/5924-Rugby-Parma-Noceto-storia-infinita.html
  14. ^ http://guide.supereva.it/rugby/interventi/2010/06/la-fusione-tra-rugby-parma-e-noceto-sintomo-di-unepoca
  15. ^ a b c Moriarty, Ian (2009-11-11). "French rugby heading for crisis". Scrum.com. Retrieved 2009-11-12. 
  16. ^ Moriarty, Ian (2010-07-06). "Time to hit the panic button?". Scrum.com. Retrieved 2010-07-06. 
  17. ^ "Stade Francais secure top flight status". ESPN Scrum. 27 June 2011. Retrieved 27 June 2011.