Clark Hunt ’87

By focusing on the core mission to “honor tradition, unite our community, win with character and inspire our fans,” Clark Hunt ’87 has led the Kansas City Chiefs to a Super Bowl victory and uplifted children and families in crisis through his organization’s numerous charitable initiatives. Hunt has been involved in the leadership of the iconic National Football League franchise for nearly two decades and serves as its chairman and CEO.

Hunt has transformed the Chiefs into one of the NFL’s most successful teams. The Chiefs have earned five AFC West Division Championships, seven playoff appearances and back-to-back trips to the AFC Championship Game. In 2019, for the first time in its history, the club received the Lamar Hunt Trophy as AFC champions. The team overcame a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to claim a 31-20 win over the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LIV, earning the Chiefs’ second Lombardi Trophy.

In addition to sparking the on-field resurgence of the team, Hunt has become a leading voice among NFL owners. In 2019, he was named chairman of their influential Finance Committee. Hunt also is a member and former chairman of the International Committee, and he serves on the Management Council Executive Committee, the Personal Conduct Committee and Commissioner Roger Goodell’s Chairmen’s Committee.

Hunt is also a founding investor-operator of Major League Soccer, Chairman and CEO of FC Dallas and one of the most innovative and influential members of the MLS Board of Governors.

Hunt and his father, legendary American sports pioneer Lamar Hunt, helped establish MLS in 1996, and he has been an active driver of the league’s significant growth over the last 25 years. The Hunt family conceived and constructed the first soccer-specific stadium in the United States in 1999 – a pivotal moment in the history of MLS that solidified the long-term viability of soccer in this country. Hunt also serves as the co-chairman of the MLS Product Strategy Committee and as a member of the MLS Labor Committee.

Hunt graduated first in his class at SMU in 1987, earning a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a concentration in finance. He also was a four-year letter winner on the Mustangs’ nationally ranked soccer team. He was named one of the SMU Cox School of Business Outstanding Young Alumni in 2004, and he received the SMU Cox School of Business Distinguished Alumni Award in 2018. He currently serves on the SMU Board of Trustees. He is also a member of the St. Mark’s School of Texas Board of Trustees, and served as president from 2018–2020.

Hunt and his wife, Tavia, are involved in numerous philanthropic efforts focused on children’s health and youth education through the FC Dallas Foundation and the Hunt Family Foundation. The Hunts are actively involved in a number of charitable organizations, including Crystal Charity Ball, "Just Say Yes," the Ronald McDonald House and the Special Olympics.

The Hunts have three children – Gracelyn ’20, Knobel and Ava.