The NFL’s new ownership and investment rules have seen franchise valuations soar, and the San Francisco 49ers are the latest to earn more from a piece of their pie.
The San Francisco 49ers is set for fresh investment after reports have revealed OpenAI Chairman Bret Taylor is acquiring a 1% stake in the NFL franchise.
Taylor, who is also the Co-Founder and CEO of AI agent platform Sierra, is reportedly acquiring the stake owned by majority owners the York Family in a deal which would see the 49ers’ valuation jump to $9bn.
The stake acquisition must be approved by the 49ers’ owners with a meeting expected today (December 10) to finalise the deal.
Jed York, the controlling owner, will remain in his position as CEO of the five-time Super Bowl champions, while Denise DeBartolo York and John York are expected to continue as co-Chair’s. The York Family is expected to retain a 90% majority stake in the franchise.
Taylor’s investment would see the 49ers become the fourth-most valuable NFL franchise alongside the New England Patriots, according to Forbes.
The Dallas Cowboys are the most valuable at £13bn, followed by the Los Angeles Rams in second at $10.5bn, and the New York Giants in third at $10.1bn.
Bret Taylor’s investment past
Taylor has served as chairman of the OpenAI Board of Directors since November 2023, one year after the company launched the popular AI chatbot ChatGPT.
His experience within AI led him to co-founding Sierra leading the company to a $10bn valuation in September 2025 after raising $350m in its most recent funding round.
Before his ventures in AI, Taylor is an experienced figurehead within the tech space, having been based in San Francisco – the 49ers home market – almost all his life, and born in nearby Oakland.
He has served as the co-CEO of Salesforce for six years before stepping down in November 2022, where he held shares in the company. Taylor also served on the Board of Axon, holding stock in the company, as well as serving on the Board of Directors for Shopify and was the Chief Technology Officer for Meta.
Taylor has also become an angel investor in startup companies such as The Browser Company, Socket and Terraton.
The 49ers have enhanced investment before this year
The NFC’s 49ers have increasingly looked to attract new capital this year, with Taylor becoming the latest potential investor.
In May, the York Family sold off stakes to ICONIQ Capital partner Will Griffith, Sun Microsystems co-founder Vinod Khosla, and Bessemer Venture Partners partner Byron Deeter. Each was worth 6.2%.
All three investors are local to the Bay Area and their investments valued the franchise at $8.6bn at the time.
Further investment came last September, when Fortress Investment Group Managing Partner and Board Chairman Pete Briger Jr. acquired a 3.2% stake in the franchise.
These investments fall in line with the NFL’s franchise ownership and investment rules which were introduced in August 2024.
The rules state new investors must adhere to a six-year holding period and not exceed a maximum of six investments across multiple NFL franchises. Direct investment from sovereign wealth funds is prohibited. Controlling/majority owners can sell up to a maximum of 10% in an NFL franchise, but no lower than 3%.
Speaking at an NFL league meeting in March 2025, Jed York revealed his family’s interest in additional investment, but assured they would “try to find the right people who would help bolster everything that we’re doing in and around the team” on and off the field.
