Lamar Hunt Net Worth: Kansas City Chiefs Founder's Family Among America's Wealthiest

Kansas City Chiefs' late founder and owner Lamar Hunt’s family has a net worth of $15 billion, making them one of the wealthiest clans in the U.S.

Lamar's father, Haroldson Lafayette Hunt, made it big after investing in the oil industry in 1936. At the time, American oil was still largely untapped, and investments were a gamble. In Haroldson’s case, it was a calculated move that resulted in good returns.

The money he made from oil was invested in other sectors such as publishing and cosmetics, Insider reported. At the time of the patriarch’s death in 1974, he left behind an estimated $3 billion fortune.

Haroldson spread his wealth among his 14 children, who also invested in different industries like their father. Ray Lee Hunt got into the oil sector, Caroline Rose Hunt tried the hotel and resorts business and Lamar Hunt became interested in sports, Forbes reported.

Lamar tried to enter the NFL via an expansion team but was rejected. He built his own league, the American Football League. The Dallas Texans, which he owned, then moved to Kansas City, Missouri, later becoming the Kansas City Chiefs. His league and the NFL merged in 1966.

The term “Super Bowl” was actually coined by Lamar. Before he died in 2006, he had passed on all obligations to his son, Clark Hunt. Aside from the Kansas City Chiefs, Clark also owns several sports teams such as FC Dallas and a small part of the Chicago Bulls.

The Hunt family owns several businesses in different sectors. Aside from those earlier mentioned, they are also in real estate. It’s not hard to imagine the scope of their wealth, but the biggest investment they did was probably buying the Chiefs team for $25,000 in the '60s. Now, the team is valued at $2.3 billion.

The Kansas City Chiefs are set to face Tampa Bay Buccaneers at the Super Bowl LV on Feb. 7. It will be a match pitting rising star Patrick Mahomes against who many consider the greatest of all-time, Tom Brady.

Should Mahomes lead the Chiefs to victory, it could mean the passing of the torch. However, if Brady and Tampa Bay win, he would further cement his status as the G.O.A.T., not just in professional football, but in the sporting world.

If the Chiefs win the Super Bowl, it will further increase the team’s value, and at the same time, push up the net worth of the Hunt family.