Meet the Hunt family, the billionaire owners of the Kansas City Chiefs and one of America's richest dynasties

The Hunt family is best known as the owners of the Kansas City Chiefs, but their fortune was originally built in oil.

Feb 7, 2025 - 15:25
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Meet the Hunt family, the billionaire owners of the Kansas City Chiefs and one of America's richest dynasties
Tavia, Clark, and Gracie Hunt posed at the 13th annual NFL Honors in 2024. Tavia Hunt wore a red midi-length gown with a deep V-neck, Clark Hunt wore a black suit with a white button-down and red tie, and Gracie Hunt wore a long-sleeve, knee-length metallic dress.
The Hunt family owns the Kansas City Chiefs.
  • The Hunt family is one of the wealthiest families in America, thanks to early investments in oil.
  • They're widely known as the owners of the Kansas City Chiefs.
  • Lamar Hunt founded the team in 1959; his son, Clark Hunt, is now its chairman and CEO.

The Kansas City Chiefs are used to making headlines. From their star quarterback Patrick Mahomes and controversial kicker Harrison Butker to their connections to Taylor Swift and, of course, their upcoming fifth Super Bowl appearance in the last seven seasons, it's hard to imagine a time when people weren't talking about the Chiefs.

That's good news for the Hunt family, who've owned the team since the beginning.

The Chiefs were founded by Lamar Hunt Sr. in 1959 as the Dallas Texans, but the team has been in Kansas City since 1963. Now, team ownership is divided between his children, Clark Hunt, Sharron Hunt Munson, Daniel Hunt, and Lamar Hunt Jr. with principal decision making falling to Clark, who's been the team's CEO since 2010.

Ahead of Sunday's big game, Clark Hunt told "The Rich Eisen Show" that his father, who died in 2006, "would be absolutely thrilled" about the prospect of a Chiefs Super Bowl three-peat, adding, "He would be beyond words."

But the Hunt family's dynasty extends much further than football. Their real story actually begins with American oil tycoon H.L. Hunt.

Here's everything you need to know about the Clark family, who Forbes estimated in 2024 were worth $24.8 billion.

Haroldson Lafayette Hunt made his fortune in the oil industry.
A portrait of Haroldson Lafayette Hunt circa 1940s.
H.L. Hunt founded the Hunt Oil Company in 1936.

In 1964, The New York Times reported that almost 30 years after H.L. Hunt founded the Hunt Oil Company, his family had an estimated fortune of $700 million (around $7 billion in today's money).

At the time of the report, the company was producing oil and natural gas in 12 states, including Texas, Louisiana, and North Dakota.

With his great success in the oil business, H.L. Hunt reportedly invested profits in other industries, such as publishing, cosmetics, and even pecan farming.
H.L. Hunt (left) shaking hands with Douglas McKay, then Secretary of the Interior, at the 34th annual American Petroleum Institute. Other men stood nearby.
H.L. Hunt invested in other industries.

Hunt funded Facts Forum News, his foundation for producing conservative, anti-Communist radio and television programs, from 1951 to 1963, per the University of Houston.

Hunt died in 1974 with an estimated net worth between $2 billion and $3 billion.
A portrait of H.L. Hunt at his desk in 1968.
Hunt died in 1974 at 85 years old.

His fortune was put into trusts for each of his 15 children, whom he had with three different women.

One of his sons, Ray Lee Hunt, is the wealthiest of all 15 siblings.
A close up of Ray Lee Hunt during the Middle East Petroleum and Gas Conference in Kuwait City in 2010.
Ray Lee Hunt is chairman emeritus of Hunt Consolidated, Inc.

Forbes reported that Ray Lee Hunt has a net worth of $6.9 billion, as of February 2025. He is chairman emeritus of Hunt Consolidated, Inc., which includes Hunt Oil Company, Hunt Energy, and Hunt Realty Investments.

Ray's sister, Caroline Rose Hunt, founded Rosewood Hotels & Resorts in 1979 after her father left her The Rosewood Corporation.
Caroline Rose Hunt posed at the Junior League of Los Angeles Carnivale Gala in 2004.
Caroline Rose Hunt founded Rosewood Hotels & Resorts.

Rosewood Hotels & Resorts was sold to New World Hospitality (now known as Rosewood Hotel Group) in 2011 for $229.5 million, per AP News and PR Newswire.

Caroline Rose Hunt died in 2018 at age 95.

Their brother, William Herbert Hunt, led their oil and gas company Petro-Hunt.
hunt brothers
William Herbert Hunt's family continues to operate Petro-Hunt.

Before his death in April 2024, William Herbert Hunt served as an advisor to management at Petro-Hunt. Per the company website, his family continues to own and operate Petro-Hunt, which, in addition to its focus on oil and gas, also purchases minerals and royalties, invests in real estate, and also partially owns an oil refinery.

Another brother, Lamar Hunt, cofounded the American Football League.
Lamar Hunt looked on before a 1986 game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Pittsburgh Steelers.
Lamar Hunt founded the Kansas City Chiefs.

Lamar Hunt founded the American Football League (AFL) in 1959 to rival the National Football League (NFL) after being refused access to buying a franchise. Since the AFL and NFL officially merged in 1970, the Lamar Hunt Trophy has been awarded to the winner of the AFC Championship.

Lamar also founded the Kansas City Chiefs (originally known as the Dallas Texans), which the family still owns today, and is credited with coining the term "Super Bowl."

Lamar's four children and his wife, Norma Hunt, inherited the Kansas City Chiefs after he died in 2006.
Chiefs CEO Clark Hunt is presented with the Lamar Hunt Trophy after the 2024 AFC Championship.
Lamar Hunt's four children serve as co-owners of the Chiefs.

Norma Hunt died in 2023 at the age of 85, leaving siblings Clark Hunt, Sharron Hunt Munson, Lamar Hunt Jr., and Daniel Hunt, as co-owners of the team.

Clark Hunt, 59, is the chairman and CEO of the Chiefs organization.
A close up of Chiefs CEO Clark Hunt at Super Bowl LIX Opening Night.
Clark Hunt has been CEO of the Kansas City Chiefs since 2010.

Hunt took over as CEO in 2010 and hired Andy Reid as head coach in 2013. Since then, the Chiefs have created a winning dynasty with three Super Bowl wins in five seasons.

In an interview with "The Rich Eisen Show," Hunt said a Super Bowl three-peat "would really be a credit to Andy Reid, Patrick Mahomes, his teammates for the work they put in, not only over the last three years, but really the entire time they've been with our organization."

In addition to the Chiefs, the Lamar Hunt family owns the MLS team FC Dallas and a minority stake in the Chicago Bulls.
Jesus Ferreira, #10 of FC Dallas, dribbled during a 2024 game against Sporting Kansas City.
The Hunt family was a charter investor in Major League Soccer.

In addition to being chairman and CEO of the Chiefs, Clark Hunt is also chairman and CEO of FC Dallas, while his brother, Daniel Hunt, is the club's president.

The family's involvement with the team was actually decades in the making, as Lamar Hunt founded the Dallas Tornado and the North American Soccer League in 1967 before becoming a charter investor in Major League Soccer (MLS) in 1996.

In 1999, Lamar Hunt funded the first stadium dedicated solely to soccer in the US, Columbus Crew Stadium. That same year, he was awarded the National Soccer Hall of Fame Medal of Honor, and the US Open Cup Tournament was renamed for him.

The family took over the MLS club Dallas Burn in 2003, which was relaunched as FC Dallas two years later.

The Lamar Hunt family also has a large real-estate portfolio built under Hunt Midwest, based in Kansas City.
Lamar Hunt's children, Sharron Hunt Munson and Clark Hunt, on the sidelines of a Kansas City Chiefs game in 2019.
The Lamar Hunt family also owns the company Hunt Midwest.

According to the company's website, Hunt Midwest is a "privately held real estate development company" with "more than $2.5 billion of developed projects" including senior living communities and residential, multifamily, and industry-focused locations like SubTropolis.

Clark Hunt is married to Tavia Shackles Hunt.
Clark Hunt and his wife, Tavia Shackles Hunt, before a January 2025 game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Denver Broncos.
The pair wed in 1993.

The couple married in 1993 and have three children together: Gracie, Ava, and Knobel.

Shackles Hunt is from Kansas City, Missouri, and was involved in beauty pageants, winning Miss Missouri Teen USA, Miss Kansas USA, and finishing second runner-up at the Miss USA pageant, People reported.

She has also worked as director of the Chiefs Women's Organization.

"I love being a leader of it and organizing events to familiarize our extended football family with Kansas City and plug them into serving the community," she told Her Life Magazine in 2018.

"It bonds us together on the field and off the field to gather to serve the community and enjoy fellowship together," she added.

Their daughter, Gracie Hunt, was crowned Miss Kansas USA in 2021 and works in public relations for the Chiefs.
A close up of Gracie Hunt on the sidelines before the Kansas City Chiefs divisional playoff game against the Houston Texans.
Gracie Hunt

Gracie Hunt, 25, grew up playing soccer but was forced to stop after suffering four concussions. She then pivoted to beauty pageants, winning Miss Texas Teen International in 2016, Miss Texas International in 2018, and Miss Kansas in 2021.

Now, Hunt works in public relations for the Chiefs while also taking on projects of her own, including a capsule collection with Wear by Erin Andrews, which she's shared online with her 660,000 Instagram followers.

Hunt told People in January, "Coming out with a capsule collection with Erin was a way for me to create something that is my own."

She is also a philanthropist, having founded Breaking Barriers Through Sports in 2016. According to her website, the organization "aims to give people a positive identity and confidence through athletics and living a healthy lifestyle."

She has been in a confirmed relationship with licensed real-estate broker and former college football player Cody Keith since September 2024.

 

Tavia and Gracie Hunt shared their views on family values following Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker's controversial commencement speech in May 2024.
Tavia Shackles Hunt (L) and Gracie Hunt (R) at a Kansas City Chiefs game in 2022.
Gracie Hunt told "Fox & Friends" at the time, "I really respect Harrison and his Christian faith and what he's accomplished on and off the field."

In May 2024, Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker delivered a commencement speech at Benedictine College, a small Catholic school in Atchison, Kansas.

In his address, Butker told women in the audience they'd been told "the most diabolical lies" about the value in pursuing a career. He also told men to be "unapologetic" in their masculinity and fight "the cultural emasculation of men."

His words drew backlash, including from the sisters of Mount St. Scholastica, nuns affiliated with the college. They wrote in a statement on their website that his words "seem to have fostered division."

However, both Tavia and Gracie appeared to support Butker in respective social media posts and TV appearances.

Nearly a week after Butker's address, Tavia Hunt shared photos of her and her daughters on Instagram as well as a diagram documenting the pros and cons of stay-at-home parenting and a screenshot of an article on the happiness of married couples. In the lengthy caption, Shackles Hunt wrote that she's always encouraged her daughters to be educated and "chase their dreams," but noted that she also wants them to know that finding a spouse and raising a family "is one of the greatest blessings this world has to offer."

"Affirming motherhood and praising your wife, as well as highlighting the sacrifice and dedication it takes to be a mother, is not bigoted," she added. "Someone disagreeing with you doesn't make them hateful; it simply means they have a different opinion."

Given the post's themes of motherhood and faith, fans were quick to connect Shackles Hunt's words to those of Harrison Butker, who, in his commencement address, spoke about his wife, Isabelle, and how she embraced "one of the most important titles of all: homemaker."

Meanwhile, Gracie Hunt was asked about Butker's speech on a May 2024 episode of "Fox & Friends."

"I really respect Harrison and his Christian faith and what he's accomplished on and off the field," she said. Hunt also praised her mother's ability to stay home with her and her siblings while they were growing up, but added that "there are many women out there who can't make that decision."

Today, the Hunt family has a combined net worth of $24.8 billion.
Clark Hunt and family at Super Bowl LVIII in 2024.
Clark Hunt and his family attended Super Bowl LVIII in 2024.

Per Forbes, the Hunts are the 12th richest family in the US behind other familial dynasties like the Walton family, Mars family, and Cathy family.

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