All About Clark Hunt, Chairman and CEO of the Kansas City Chiefs
Clark Hunt inherited ownership of the current Super Bowl champs in 2006 from Lamar Hunt, who founded the Kansas City Chiefs in 1963
Clark Hunt was born into a football family.
While the chairman and CEO of the Kansas City Chiefs has led the reigning Super Bowl-winning team for the past two decades, he's been a part of the organization his entire life.
Clark's father, Lamar Hunt, founded the Chiefs in 1963 after he moved his original team from Dallas to Kansas City. Upon Lamar's death in 2006, Clark, along with his siblings, inherited ownership of the Kansas City team.
Though co-owner, Clark is the operating head of and a driving force behind the Chiefs. He was named chairman in 2005 and CEO in 2010, having earned eight AFC West Division championships and made 10 playoff appearances since taking over as the team's executive officer.
Under his leadership, the Kansas City Chiefs made three Super Bowl appearances following the 2019, 2020 and 2022 seasons. The team, led by quarterback Patrick Mahomes, took the trophy in the latter two games, becoming one of 10 NFL franchises to win at least three Lombardi Trophies.
"The Chiefs not only hold the title again, they're building a dynasty," said President Joe Biden, welcoming Clark and the Kansas City team to the White House after their 2023 victory. "Super Bowl champs in 2020 and 2023, dominating the league with 64 wins in the last 5 years, the best record in the NFL."
Here's everything to know about Clark Hunt, chairman and CEO of the Kansas City Chiefs.
He's the son of Kansas City Chiefs founder Lamar Hunt
Clark inherited the Chiefs from his father, Lamar Hunt — who is not only founded the Kansas City franchise, but was also the principal founder of the American Football League (AFL) in 1959 and part-founder of Major League Soccer in 1996.
In 1960, Lamar (the son of oil tycoon H. L. Hunt) was turned down by the NFL in his attempt to start a Dallas football franchise, which led him to create the AFL to house his team the Dallas Texans. Three years later, Lamar relocated the Dallas-based team to Kansas City and renamed them the Chiefs. In 1970, the Chiefs became an NFL franchise.
Lamar became a legend in the football world, with many accolades and honors to his name; among them is the Lamar Hunt Trophy, the ultimate prize received by each winner of the AFC Championship Game since 1984.
Clark's mom, Norma, earned the title "First Lady of Football." She died in June 2023, after witnessing all three Super Bowl wins to the team's name to date.
"This is the first year without my mom and dad, and they're just so much a part of our organization, so much part of the DNA of the organization, so they’ll be missed," Clark said of his late parents when speaking to a Kansas City outlet in September.
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He's part-owner of the Kansas City Chiefs
Clark was named chairman of the Kansas City chiefs in 2005. When Lamar died in 2006, Clark and his siblings — brothers Lamar Hunt Jr. and Daniel Hunt, plus sister Sharron Hunt — inherited ownership of the franchise.
Their grandfather and Lamar's father, H.L. Hunt, was an American oil tycoon. As of 2020, Business Insider reported that "the Hunt family had a combined net worth of $15.5 billion, making them one of the richest families in America."
He hired Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid
Andy Reid, current head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs, was hired by Clark on Jan. 7, 2013 to be the club's 13th head coach in franchise history.
In fact, it was Clark who called Reid directly after he got let go from the Eagles, and had one of the first conversations with him about his next career move. "I was fortunate that on Monday when I placed my call to him that I was the first phone call he picked up," Clark said during a January 2013 press conference.
"It was probably sometime in the first couple of hours," Hunt said of when he knew Reid was his guy. "He had tremendous energy and we clicked right from the get go. So I knew pretty early... and I had my fingers crossed as well."
Reid is regarded as one of the most successful NFL coaches of all time and has been credited with turning the Chiefs' franchise around entirely. And according to Clark, he shows no sign of stopping any time soon.
When asked about retiring by NBC Sports in July, Clark said, “That’s never come up in my conversations with Andy ... As I see Andy, he remains incredibly energized and excited."
He continued, "He’s all about the Kansas City Chiefs and trying to get us back to the playoffs and win another Super Bowl. I think he has as much energy and passion as I’ve seen in the 10-plus years that he’s been with us.”
His wife is a former Kansas City Chiefs intern
Hunt met his wife, Tavia Hunt, when she was interning for the Kansas City Chiefs in 1991.
“In 1991, I was a college intern in the PR department," she explained to a local Kansas City news outlet. "After the first kickoff luncheon at the end of the summer, we came back to kick off the season. At the end of that event, this nice guy came up named Clark."
Tavia said she learned they "had so much in common" after their initial conversation. "He asked me if I’d like to have dinner sometime, and the rest is history.”
He has three children
Clark and Tavia are the parents of three children: daughters Gracie and Ava, plus son Knobel Hunt. The entire family is involved with the Chiefs and can often be seen cheering the team on from the sidelines at games.
When speaking to the aforementioned Kansas City outlet, Tavia said the "cornerstone for our family" is "faith, family and football." She added, "But we say football is family because for us we really believe that we were made for relationships.”
Gracie told Fox News ahead of the 2023 Super Bowl, "I was raised on the sidelines. I've loved getting to watch my amazing role models, my dad and mom, lead the organization and also share their faith."
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