Houston billionaire Dan Friedkin should have enough money to purchase whatever catches his eye. There remains one notable exemption.
Friedkin, 61, is the chairman and CEO of The Friedkin Group and has an estimated net worth of more than $9 billion. He’s the majority owner of the Italian soccer club AS Roma and the English soccer club Everton FC, and in recent years has pursued multiple American professional sports franchises. Both pursuits fell short as of April.
Friedkin failed to acquire the Boston Celtics despite an attempt in 2025, when the Celtics were sold to Bill Chisholm, managing partner at Symphony Technology Group, for a valuation exceeding $6 billion. Friedkin then turned his eye from the hardwood to the diamond, where he pushed for his consortium, the Friedkin Group, to become the owners of the San Diego Padres. The Friedkin Group was among the final four groups in consideration to purchase the Padres. Friedkin ultimately lost that pursuit, as private-equity billionaire José E. Feliciano and his wife, Kwanza Jones, purchased the club last week for an MLB-record $3.9 billion.
Back in 2017, Friedkin was a leading bidder for the Houston Rockets when former owner Les Alexander put the franchise up for sale. Tilman Fertitta ultimately won the bid when his then-record-setting $2.2 billion offer was accepted.
Friedkin is likely frustrated by his latest flop, a second straight failure to land a professional sports franchise stateside. But sports fans in Houston might have reason to celebrate Friedkin’s swing-and-a-miss regarding the Padres.
Houston is still without an NHL team as of 2026, though there are whispers of a potential team in the city if the league decides to expand to 34 teams later this decade or early in the 2030s. Friedkin would be a natural choice to purchase said expansion team, and potentially build a new arena, too, either in Houston or in one of the many pockets of sprawl (perhaps The Woodlands) in the greater Houston area.
Houston has never housed an NHL team. Professional hockey left Houston more than a decade ago, when the AHL’s Houston Aeros played their final game in the Bayou City before moving to Iowa. For Friedkin, bringing the NHL to Houston could be a perfect opportunity, allowing the Rice graduate to become something of a beloved folk hero in his adopted hometown.
Requests for comment from the Friedkin Group to Chron went unanswered as of this publication.