Cuban, who purchased the Mavericks organization in 2000, sold a majority stake to the Adelson-Dumont families in 2023, infused innovation into the NBA and changed what the face of team ownership looks like. The Mavericks won the NBA title in 2011.<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing more fun than challenging the status quo and changing how things have always been done,\u201d Cuban said in a statement. \u201cI was proud to do it on behalf of Mavs fans everywhere. And I thank each and every one of them for sticking with us through the good times and all the mistakes I made. #MFFL!\u201d<\/p>\n
Business Briefing<\/p>\n
By signing up, you agree to our\u00a0Terms of Service<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Privacy Policy.<\/a><\/p>\n Over the past 25 years, Jones, who purchased the Cowboys in 1989, has continued to reshape the broader sports business ecosystem. In 2009, he opened sparkling AT&T Stadium, which continues to serve as a best-in-class facility for sporting events and beyond. And the Cowboys are the world\u2019s most valuable sports franchise, with a $12.5 billion valuation, according to CNBC.<\/a><\/p>\n Welts, who became Mavericks\u2019 CEO last January 2025, has the rare distinction of being part of championship teams in the NBA (four), WNBA (two) and the NBA G League. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2018.<\/p>\n \u201cReading through the list is like witnessing the evolution of sports, and it is so humbling and unexpected to be included,\u201d Welts said in a statement. \u201cI\u2019m incredibly appreciative to all the people I\u2019ve worked with who\u2019ve influenced me, and to Abe Madkour and the SBJ team who contributed to this project.\u201d<\/p>\n In addition to his role as chairman and CEO of the Chiefs \u2014 who have won three Super Bowls during the Patrick Mahomes era \u2014 and FC Dallas, Hunt is the honorary co-chair of Kansas City World Cup 2026, having played an integral role in bringing the global event to Kansas City this coming summer. <\/p>\n \u201cClark\u2019s combination of entrepreneurial vision and strong values have earned tremendous respect across the industry,\u201d former Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman said prior to the Chiefs playing in last season\u2019s Super Bowl. \u201dHe\u2019s honest, evenhanded and has created a winning culture.\u201d<\/p>\n Yormark, who became the Big 12\u2019s commissioner in August 2022, has revitalized a league many thought was doomed after Texas and Oklahoma left for the SEC. From a business standpoint, Yormark has reshaped the league into arguably the most forward-thinking, innovative and commercially aggressive conference in college sports.<\/p>\n \u201cI live in a world where I\u2019m happy but never satisfied,\u201d Yormark told The Dallas Morning News last week before SBJ\u2019s list was released. \u201cI\u2019m happy about our growth. There\u2019s never been a better time than right now for this conference.\u201d<\/p>\n SBJ\u2019s list recognizes the \u201ctrailblazers who have set the pace for change in sports business. From pioneering founders and high-stakes dealmakers to brand architects and media moguls, these 125 have reshaped the multibillion-dollar sports economy across every sector: sponsorship, tech, media, venues, events, agencies and leagues.\u201d<\/p>\n Others on the list connected to D-FW include Mark Abbott \u2014 who wore many hats with MLS, including deputy commissioner \u2014 and Don Garber \u2014 MLS\u2019s commissioner since 1999 \u2014 both of whom are in the National Soccer Hall of Fame, which is in Frisco.<\/p>\n The wealthy businessman used the alchemy of leveraged buyouts to spin the soft-drink market into gold. \u201cHe had vision,\u201d said Ross Perot Jr.<\/p>\n Perhaps because of the way his ownership ended, you only remember the low points. But Hicks was once the toast of the town.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sports fans know Dallas-Fort Worth is chock-full of some of the nation\u2019s most influential sports business figures \u2014…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":81174,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[910,102,113,104,103,2256],"class_list":{"0":"post-81173","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-dallas","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-dallas","10":"tag-dallas-cowboys","11":"tag-dallas-headlines","12":"tag-dallas-news","13":"tag-sports-business"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81173","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=81173"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81173\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/81174"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=81173"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=81173"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=81173"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Norm](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1765246409_235_JTPQ5LO4OKJQKUVVXG4UFQ3F6M.jpg\")
<\/a>Tom Hicks: From teen DJ to Dallas titan who remade the soft-drink industry in his image<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Texas](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1765246409_83_H7JC65UVNRF7FISABIDCX6MZM4.jpg\")
<\/a>The highs and lows of Tom Hicks\u2019 tenure as owner of the Texas Rangers, Dallas Stars<\/a><\/p>\n