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Joe Pompliano Profile picture
@JoePompliano
Sep 15, 2020 • 15 tweets • 5 min read • Read on X
Jerry Jones owns the Dallas Cowboys, the most valuable sports franchise in the world, worth over $6 billion.

The story of how he did it is wild.

Time for a thread 👇👇👇
1) When it comes to football, Jerry Jones has done more than just own the Dallas Cowboys.

In 1964, as a 182-pound guard for the University of Arkansas, Jerry Jones co-captained the team to a national championship victory.

Jones' teammates included Jimmy Johnson & Barry Switzer.
2) After graduating from the University of Arkansas, Jerry Jones set out to conquer the business world.

His first attempt? Pizza.

Jones took a $1M loan and opened up a few Shakey's Pizza Parlors.

The venture failed, and Jones went to work for his father selling insurance.
3) Although Jerry Jones' first entrepreneurship attempt failed, he wouldn't stop there.

At the age of 23, Jones attempted to buy the San Diego Chargers.

Originally considered a long shot, Jones put together a $5.8M agreement to buy the team, but was unable to secure financing.
4) Determined not to have the reputation of a failure, Jerry Jones quickly started his third entrepreneurship venture.

Enticed by the upside of ‘wildcatting’, the speculative act of drilling for oil, Jones founded "Jones Oil and Land Lease."

This is where it gets interesting…
5) Throughout the 1970s & 1980s, Jerry Jones started acquiring land with the hope of finding oil fields.

His big break came in 1982, when Jones acquired a piece of land for $15M, which turned out to have natural gas reserves.

Four years later, Jones sold the land for $175M.
6) After making a fortune in the oil business, Jerry Jones returned for another chance at NFL ownership.

In 1989, Jones purchased the Dallas Cowboys for $140 million, or about $293M today.

At the time, Jerry Jones was ridiculed as no sports team had ever sold for over $100M.
7) Shortly after purchasing the Dallas Cowboys, a team that was losing $1M monthly, Jerry Jones set out to make changes.

Within months Jones:
- Fired GM Tex Schramm
- Cut 1/2 the staff to reduce costs
- Fired longtime coach Tom Landry
- Hired college teammate Jimmy Johnson as HC
8) On the field, Jerry Jones helped turn things around quickly for the Dallas Cowboys.

During his first 6 years of ownership, the Cowboys won 3 Super Bowls and had 5 straight 11+ win seasons.

Considered the best team of the 90s, Jones also saw success on the business side…
9) Since becoming an owner in 1989, Jerry Jones has transformed how NFL teams do business.

Jones was the pioneer of NFL sponsorships, signing deals with Nike, Pepsi and American Express to become exclusive sponsors of Texas Stadium.

Once Jones did it, more NFL owners followed.
10) In addition to sponsorships, Jerry Jones was instrumental in the negotiation of TV contracts.

With revenue flat in 1993, the NFL planned to give money back to TV networks.

Jones demanded they let Fox into the bidding, eventually causing a 20% increase in revenue instead.
11) In 2008, Jerry Jones teamed up with George Steinbrenner to create Legends Hospitality Management.

Legends, worth $750M, partners with stadiums around the world to operate concession & merchandising sales.

Clients include:
- SoFi Stadium
- Allegiant Stadium
- Rose Bowl
12) Since buying the Dallas Cowboys for $140M in 1989, Jerry Jones has seen his investment grow to $6.4 billion in 2020.

Regardless of what you think about Jerry Jones' loud and outspoken ownership style, he is undoubtedly one of the greatest owners in the history of sports.
If you learned something today and want to receive more updates about the business and money behind sports, subscribe here to receive my free daily newsletter.

huddleup.substack.com
Sources:

dmagazine.com/publications/d…

sportico.com/valuations/tea…

forbes.com/profile/jerry-…

forbes.com/sites/montebur…

fox5sandiego.com/sports/jerry-j…

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More from @JoePompliano

Joe Pompliano Profile picture
Mar 1
The 2024 Formula 1 calendar is insane:

• 24 races
• 21 countries
• 5 continents
• 180+ hours of flights

Teams will travel 75,000 miles & transport 1,500 tons of equipment.

This makes it a logistical nightmare, so here's a breakdown of how Formula 1 pulls it off.

THREAD 👇
1) The simplest way to explain Formula 1 logistics is by breaking the calendar into two parts:

• European Races
• Flyaway Races

Let's start with European Races.
2) European races are self-explanatory — these are races that take place in Europe.

Examples:
• Monaco
• Monza
• Zandvoort
• Silverstone
• Spa

These races are easier and cheaper logistically because everything is transported by trucks rather than planes and boats. Image
Read 16 tweets
Joe Pompliano Profile picture
Feb 7
Apple Music pays the NFL $50 million annually to sponsor the Super Bowl halftime show.

But Usher won't get any of that money.

Instead, he'll perform for free, leveraging the exposure to gain followers, sell tickets, and increase streaming numbers.

Here's how it works 👇 Image
1) Some of the world's most famous artists have performed at the Super Bowl:

• Prince
• Michael Jackson
• Bruce Springsteen
• Beyonce
• Justin Timberlake
• The Rolling Stones
• Rihanna

But NONE of these artists were paid. Image
2) Here's how the financials work:

• NFL signs a $50M sponsorship deal
• Artists get a ~$15 million production budget

This budget covers 2,000 to 3,000 part-time workers, including set design, security, dancers, and marketing.

But artists don't get any of the money.
Read 11 tweets
Joe Pompliano Profile picture
Jan 27
My favorite sports business story involves two brothers turning $1 million into $800 million as basketball team owners without ever owning an NBA team.

It's a masterclass in leverage, long-term thinking, and the power of equity and ownership.

Here's the crazy story 👇 Image
1) The story starts with Ozzie & Daniel Silna.

The two brothers were born in New Jersey after their parents immigrated from Latvia in the 1930s.

They worked at their dad's small textile business, but when he sold the company, they started manufacturing polyester in the 1960s.
2) As polyester sales skyrocketed throughout the 1960s, Ozzie & Daniel Silna's business grew.

So they used $1 million in profit to buy the ABA’s failing Carolina Cougars in 1974.

They then moved the team to Saint Louis and rebranded as the Saint Louis Spirits. Image
Read 12 tweets
Joe Pompliano Profile picture
Jun 13, 2023
I asked my audience: "What is the best sports book you've ever read?" — and received more than 1,000 responses.

Here are the Top 10 👇

1) Open, an autobiography by Andre Agassi.

Everyone needs to read this, seriously. Image
2) Moneyball by Michael Lewis

This book follows the Oakland A's historic 2002 season — 103 wins with one of the lowest budgets in MLB —and details how the Athletics pioneered the use of analytics and advanced statistics.

This is a must-read, plain & simple. Image
3) The Score Takes Care Of Itself

This book breaks down the leadership lessons Bill Walsh installed as head coach of the 49ers, taking the team from a 2-14 record to Super Bowl Champions in just 2 years.

It's full of great stories.

And it's so good that I've read it 3-4 times. Image
Read 12 tweets
Joe Pompliano Profile picture
May 31, 2023
Conor McGregor in 2007:

• Working as a plumber
• Living with his parents
• Thousands of dollars in debt
• Cashing $235 welfare checks

But now, @TheNotoriousMMA has made over $600 million and is one of the world's highest-paid athletes.

This is his WILD story 👇 Image
1) McGregor's story reads like a Hollywood script.

He was a 12-year-old boy growing up in Crumlin, Ireland, who started taking boxing classes after being bullied by kids at school.

"Things like this happened a few times, so I thought, f**k this. I am going to go and train." ImageImage
2) McGregor started training at the Crumlin Boxing Club.

But then he discovered MMA at 16 and fully committed his life to the sport.

McGregor would watch delayed recordings of UFC fights and then practice the moves in his backyard.

But there was a problem. Image
Read 14 tweets
Joe Pompliano Profile picture
Apr 27, 2023
The NFL Draft is a MASSIVE event:

• $3 million construction cost
• $100 million economic impact
• 10 million viewers and 300,000 fans

But it wasn't always this big.

ESPN *made* it this big.

Here's the fascinating story 👇 Image
1) The NFL didn't have a draft for its first 14 years.

But Eagles owner Bert Bell got tired of losing — the best college players signed with the best teams — and pitched an idea to level the playing field.

And the NFL draft was born.

However, it looked different back then. Image
2) The first NFL Draft was held in 1936 at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Philadelphia.

• Draft picks written on a chalkboard
• Only 81 players selected (262 today)

Even crazier?

That year's #1 pick, Heisman winner Jay Berwanger, turned down the NFL to become a salesman instead. Image
Read 11 tweets

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