Sports offer athletes glory, discipline, fame, and a lasting legacy. But for the businessmen behind the scenes, it’s all about wealth or rather immense wealth and much more. At least those who put their eggs in the right basket (if that were a sport, the ones mentioned below would inevitably win). We have compiled a list of successful American sports tycoons who have witnessed adrenaline, tasted success, and given the world a glimpse of their life’s grandeur with luxury vessels that would put five-star hotels to shame. Some have risen like phoenixes from struggling times to nosedive into success, making these superyachts a tapestry of their thriving times. Some have modeled their pleasure craft after their interests, while some who were born wealthy only continue the good life on a different terrain with equal or greater comforts.
7. Steve Bisciotti, Baltimore Ravens – Winning Drive, 130 feet-
Yachts are an extension of their owner’s personality, and the 130-footer Westport yacht is no different. As a young boy, the tycoon, who is worth $7.5 billion today according to Forbes, witnessed his father’s demise and the struggles of his middle-class Italian-American household. It was a winning drive that led 23-year-old Bisciotti to Aerotek, a staffing company in the aerospace and technology sectors, with his cousin Jim Davis.
As fate would have it, they never looked back, especially not after generating $1.5 million in sales in their first year, 1983. The business that started in a basement evolved into the largest staffing firm in the U.S., with more than $15 billion in yearly revenue. It is no wonder that the 64-year-old purchased 49% of the Ravens in 2000 and followed it up with a stunning luxury yacht in 2012. The boat, designed by Gregory Marshall, sleeps 10 guests in 5 suites and boasts interiors by Pacific Custom Interiors. Able to achieve a top speed of 24 knots owing to two MTU diesel engines, the $20 million ship balances luxury and function brilliantly.
6. Terry Pegula, Buffalo Sabres – Top Five Yacht, 200 feet-
The son of a truck driver from Quebec relied on his science degree in petroleum and natural gas engineering and $7,500 from family and friends in 1983 to start his natural gas drilling company. The 73-year-old made a fortune in oil and gas before transforming it into a sports empire that includes the Buffalo Bills and Buffalo Sabres. The father of famous professional tennis player Jessica Pegula saw many highs, but the one we like most is the $75 million Royal Hakvoort vessel named after the owner’s five kids. The tycoon, worth $10.8 billion according to Forbes, has shown the world how to have a fun time with family when you can splurge $500,000 per week.
The yacht features enormous tables, large deck spaces with lounges, stylish bars, and rooms bedecked with goods from luxury brands like Hermès, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Gucci, and Brunello Cucinelli. The outdoors are especially attractive with a glass-sided blue mosaic spa pool, a huge BBQ, and a large fire pit.
5. Stanley Kroenke, Los Angeles Rams – Aquila yacht, 281 feet-
This 77-year-old sports mogul has been honing his business acumen since childhood. Raised in Mora, Missouri, he started sweeping floors at his father’s lumber yard and managing the company’s books by age ten. After earning his MBA in 1973, he met Wal-Mart heiress Ann Walton in Aspen and married her a year later. In 1985, he launched his own real estate development company, and by 1994, he ventured into sports team ownership. With a net worth of $16.9 billion, the billionaire now commands an impressive portfolio, including the Denver Nuggets, Colorado Avalanche, Colorado Rapids, and the U.K.’s Arsenal soccer club. A major landowner, with over 1.6 million acres of ranches across the U.S. and Canada also owns the majestic Aquilla superyacht with his wife, Walmart heiress Ann Walton.
The four-decker looks resplendent with a ‘waterfall’ chandelier cascading down four levels, a glass-edged jacuzzi on the sundeck, a wellness centre, a gym, and a sprawling owner’s suite with a dapper bar dubbed The London Bar. Six cabins sleep 12 guests who make the most of the $150 million pleasure craft’s amenities, including al fresco dining areas, a dedicated party deck complete with a DJ booth, AV system, smoke machine, and light show.
4. Arthur Blank, Atlanta Falcons – Dreamboat, 295 feet
This 81-year-old New York-born businessman founded Home Depot after being fired from a hardware store. As it turned out, this setback led to a revolutionary success, transforming the home improvement industry and making the Babson Institute graduate a billionaire. Worth $9.1 billion today, the father of nine from three marriages retired as Home Depot’s co-chairman in 2001 and purchased the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons for $545 million in 2002. He also commissioned the massive ‘DreAMBoat,’ highlighting his initials (Arthur Morris Blank), built by Oceanco with interiors designed by Terence Disdale.
Delivered in June 2019, the $180 million luxury Motor Yacht was a vision with ample al fresco space, including a stunning sundeck with a coffee corner, a spa pool, a bar with a television, a dedicated sunbathing area, and an outdoor cinema. Like a lavish villa, the boat features a splendid spa with a massage bath tucked away in a quiet corner, a tender garage, a family lounge, formal and informal dining rooms, and much more.
3. Daniel Snyder, Washington Commanders – Lady S, 305 feet
Snyder is an enterprising businessman worth $4.5 billion who, as a 20-year-old college dropout, made his first million leasing jets to fly college students to spring break in Fort Lauderdale and the Caribbean. The 59-year-old operated that business out of his parents’ apartment. With a successful business called Snyder Communications, he had enough wealth to buy the NFL’s Washington Commanders for $750 million in 1999. Ten years later, the boy who mopped the floors at the cafeteria inside the National Institutes of Health as a high school student splurged on a whopping $192 million yacht, Lady S.
We can picture him smiling on the sun deck of the Feadship beauty, described as a “beautiful and contemporary jewelry box.” This opulent yacht boasts standout elements like a statement beach club, a glass-bottom swimming pool with an underwater bar and a rain shower, a wellness area with a hammam, a two-level IMAX cinema, and even a professional-grade gymnasium. A sea-faring lady like no other!
2. Jerry Jones, Dallas Cowboys – Bravo Eugenia, 358 feet
From co-captaining Arkansas’ 1964 national championship football team to acquiring the Cowboys from H. R. “Bum” Bright for $140 million in 1989 (now valued at a staggering $9 billion), the 81-year-old billionaire worth $14.5 billion has showcased that sports run deep in his veins. His passion extends to art, with a collection that includes masterpieces by Picasso, Renoir, and Matisse. His $225 million Oceanco-built superyacht stands as a testament to luxury, adorned with art, bespoke furniture, and Swarovski details, all reflecting his wife Gene’s exquisite taste.
This floating marvel is celebrated not only for its lavish amenities such as a gym, beach club, Teppanyaki bar, steam room, sauna, and a full garage, but also for its eco-conscious design. Its heat- and energy-recovery systems, along with an integrated battery system, cut fuel consumption by up to 30 percent. Truly, a magnificent four-decker!
1. Shahid Khan, Jacksonville Jaguars – Kismet, 400 feet
The poster boy for rags-to-riches tales, billionaire Shahid Khan went from washing dishes for $1.20 an hour to taking delivery of one of 2024’s largest yachts. The $360 million superyacht Kismet, meaning ‘destiny,’ is a lavish Lürssen vessel that comes with exciting features like a Balinese spa, a gym, two movie theaters, and three swimming pools. The Reymond Langton-designed floating palace, dubbed a cathedral of design in his own words, is a huge leap from a teenage migrant boy grinding away in a YMCA kitchen.
With 11 stately suites, ceilings milled out of solid aluminium, fireplaces inside and out, a packed tender garage including a submarine, and the signature stainless-steel jaguar bow figure, Khan worth $13.3 billion according to Forbes, is exploring a world very different from the one he came from.
A special mention –
Frank Fertitta III, Former UFC owner – Viva, 308 feet-
The fabulous Feadship mammoth, the Viva yacht, which won accolades like Motor Yacht of the Year in 2022, deserves a mention despite her owner, Frank Fertitta III, having sold his stake to an investment group led by WME/IMG for $4 billion in 2016.
The casino business billionaire likely commissioned his superyacht around the same time as Viva was delivered in 2021, featuring a highly advanced hybrid propulsion system. The $250 million floating mansion boasts interiors by Peter Marino Architects, accommodates 14 guests in 7 cabins, and achieves a top speed of 20 knots.
