Owning a professional sports franchise is something very few of us will achieve. The average franchise value of an NFL team last year was $4.465 billion. The average NHL team was worth about $1.030 billion. Even minor league baseball franchises are valued at millions of dollars.
The takeaway is simple: If you own a sports team, you’re likely doing very well financially. And if you own multiple sports teams, you’re living your best life.
Stan Kroenke is one of those owners of multiple teams. And he’s had perhaps the most spectacular run a pro sports owner has ever had. Here’s a breakdown of his past 16 months.
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In February 2022, the Los Angeles Rams knocked off the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl LVI. The Rams also happened to host the Super Bowl at SoFi Stadium, the venue Kroenke spent $5.5 billion to build.
That summer, a pair of Colorado teams took home championships. The Colorado Mammoth won their first National Lacross League title in 16 years, knocking off the Buffalo Bandits 2-1 in a three-game series. Just eight days later, the Colorado Avalanche ended a title drought of more than two decades, dispatching the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games.
In August 2022, Arsenal F.C. debuted an eight-part docuseries called All or Nothing: Arsenal on Amazon Prime Video. The club started its Premier League season with a five-game unbeaten streak, ultimately finishing second in the table with 84 points and qualifying for next season’s Champions League group stage.
Then, in June 2023, the Denver Nuggets earned their first title since joining the NBA 47 years ago. Nikola Jokic was named Finals MVP and said, “I need to go home,” after being told the championship parade was three days after Denver’s clinching victory. The man’s got priorities.
Kroenke’s even had success with esports teams. The Los Angeles Guerrillas won the Major 2 of the 2022 Call of Duty league, while the Los Angeles Gladiators won the 2022 Kickoff Clash and Midseason Madness tournaments in the Overwatch esports league.
Kroenke founded Kroenke Sports & Entertainment in 1999, which serves as the holding company for all of his teams. The Avalanche and Nuggets are technically held by his wife, Walmart heiress Ann Walton Kroenke, because the NFL forbids owners from having teams in other markets.
If the Colorado Rapids can pull off an MLS title, all of Kroenke’s teams will have had a successful 2022 and 2023. That kind of run is unprecedented. Then again, there aren’t many owners with such a varied portfolio of franchises.