The 10 Worst Owners in Sports

Who are worst owners in sports?

Owners determine (for the most part) the fortunes of their teams. If the owner wants his team to succeed and is willing to spend the money, without being a complete idiot with the cash, the team will usually be good.

But some owners, like most on this list, are more concerned with their bottom line then the win-loss column.

10. Jeff Loria

Only a few people have been able to bring a franchise to the brink of extinction, and Loria has done it twice.

His refusal to put any money in the Expos or Olympic Stadium made them the laughingstock of baseball and almost got the Expos contracted because of it. He then sold the Expos to MLB so that he could buy the Marlins. He has done pretty much the same exact thing with them as well (the entire Marlins payroll was $21 million last year).

Luckily, the front office in Miami is by far the best in baseball and has made up for Loria’s incompetent ownership. It looks like he is finally going to get the new stadium that he has wanted since he bought the Expos, so he is going to have to find something else to complain about.

9. Peter Angelos

Before they were locked in the permanent cellar of the AL East, the Baltimore Orioles were the model franchise in all of sports. In the 40 years after they moved to Baltimore in 1954, they won three World Series and six AL Pennants.

But then, in 1993, Peter Angelos became owner. Since he took over, the Orioles have gone to the playoffs twice and have not had a winning season in a decade.

His need for complete power in the organization has hurt the franchise dearly, often ignoring advice from his general managers and becoming the king of horrible contracts. He also had the audacity to complain about MLB putting the Nationals in his region because it might take away from his “base.”

His stupidity has left the greatest ballpark in the league half empty every night.

8. Jerry Jones

Jones and Angelos seem somewhat similar to each other; both need to have all of the power, and both make some of the stupidest transactions in their respective leagues without listening to their coaches or front office.

But Jones has a particular thirst for power that goes unmatched in sports. He immediately fired Tom Landry, the legendary coach that had won two Super Bowls in Dallas, had 20 consecutive winning seasons, and basically built “America’s Team.”

Jones also fired longtime general manager Tex Schramm and made himself GM. The controversial move looked to have been a horrible mistake at first when the Cowboys went 1-15, but then things turned around, and they won two straight Super Bowls in ’92 and ’93.

But then Jones got jealous that his coach, Jimmy Johnson, was getting some of the credit, and he fired him after he just won two straight Super Bowls!

After that the team won one more Super Bowl, but it has not gotten back to the conference championship game since. The one constant during the last 13 seasons of misery: Jerry Jones.

7. Tribune Company

The faceless owners of the Cubs have been arguably the worst owners in MLB over the last 25 years.

The Cubs are in one of the largest markets in America and are one of baseball's most popular teams. However, this has never translated to much success.

The Tribune Company, until recently, has taken advantage of the Cubs' die-hard fans by putting out a cheaper product than they should and raking in the dough. Over the 27 seasons that the company has been in power, the Cubs have won one playoff series and went to the playoffs only three times in their first 20 years.

6. Mike Brown

Brown is probably the most hated man in Cincinnati. The county gave the Bengals a brand new stadium for no charge. The only requirement was that they collect a competitive team—and of course, the son of the great Paul Brown cannot even do that.

He refused to pay for a decent scouting department. He demanded control over the draft picks, and he refuses to pay for big time free agents.

Now it has been a while since I moved away from Cincinnati, but I lived there during the worst years of the franchise's history, and I can still remember the Bengals' own fans making fun of the team.

Since Mike Brown took over in 1991, the team has only played in one playoff game and has won only 35 percent of the time.

That is enough to make Paul Brown roll over in his grave.

5. William Ford

Before 1964, when Ford bought the team, the Lions had won three NFL Championships in the previous 15 years; in the 43 years since he took over the team, the Lions have won a grand total of one playoff game.

Ford is not as well-known as others on this list because, while the others are complaining about their stadiums or micromanaging, he does nothing.

He didn’t shell out the money to get a competent quarterback to help lighten the load on Barry Sanders. He let Matt Millen slowly destroy any respect the franchise had left for eight long, miserable years. He did not say a word while his team put together the most pathetic excuse for a football season that the world has ever seen.

How can one man stink at selling the two things that Americans love most (football and cars)?

4. Art Modell

Art is probably the hardest person to place on this list. While he stole Cleveland’s football team, he did bring a championship to Baltimore within a few years of moving, and the Ravens are always in the playoffs.

However, his stealing of the Browns has to be the dirtiest move in professional sports history. He ran the Browns into the ground and then blamed it on the city of Cleveland and the Browns' fans. Plus, he can barely even be considered an owner of the Ravens any more.

3. Donald Sterling

Donald Sterling is a terrific example of a horrible owner. He refuses to pay anyone anything. He is content with playing second best to the Lakers year after year.

He sees the Clippers as a business entity, not a sports team. He would gladly have his team go 0-82 if he could find a way to make money off of it.

I would feel horrible for all of those Clippers fans out there, but I'm not sure if they even exist.

2. Bill Bidwill

Bill Bidwill has owned the Cardinals for the last 46 years. In those 46 years the Cards had been to the playoffs only four times and had one win, until last season.

Don't think that one nice little playoff run is going to allow Bidwill to wipe the slate clean.

Many said during their run in the playoffs that the Cardinals had been the Clippers of the NFL, but that is completely untrue. It is the Clippers who are the Cardinals of the NBA. The Cards were the model of futility in the NFL long before the Clippers even existed.

Bidwill looks like he is back to his old ways, as he is currently refusing to pay three-time Pro Bowler Anquan Boldin, a terrific example of Bidwill's frugality and why we probably won't see the Cards back in the Super Bowl anytime soon.

1. Jeremy Jacobs

This prick from Buffalo has taken the Bruins, one of the most storied franchises in all of sports, and has singlehandedly ruined hockey in Boston, once known as Hockeytown.

For most of his time as owner, the payroll has been one of the lowest in the league even though Boston is a top 10 market. In his 35 years as the owner, they have never won the Cup and didn't win a playoff series in almost a decade until this year.

He never paid for any big-time free-agents to help take the load off Ray Bourque or Cam Neely. And don't think that this year will ever make up for his stupidity.

Warning to NHL officials: If the Bruins do win the Cup, do not leave it alone with Jacobs. He may very well attempt to sell it.