Bidwill Family Ownership

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Bidwill grew up the second of five children in his family, and is the third generation of his family to own the Cardinals. His grandfather, Charles Bidwill, bought the Cardinals in 1933, while they were still in Chicago. When Charles died in 1947, his widow, Violet, inherited the team, moving it to St. Louis in 1960. Upon Violet's death, ownership passed to father Bill and uncle Charles Bidwill Jr., with Bill becoming sole owner in 1971. Only the Chicago Bears (owned by the Halas-McCaskey family since 1921) and New York Giants (owned by the Mara family since their founding in 1925) have been in the hands of a single family longer than the Cardinals. Bidwill began to enjoy American football when he visited the Cardinals' training camp for the first time in 1969. In 1974, his father, Bill, made him one of the team's ball boys including his brothers William Jr., Patrick, and Tim. Said Bidwill in 2007: 'I understood at a young age that when you don't win, there will be criticism.' Michael Bidwill attended Georgetown Preparatory School in North Bethesda, Maryland and later earned a Bachelor of Science degree in finance from Saint Louis University in 1987 where he was a member of Phi Delta Theta. Later, he received his Juris Doctor from The Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law in 1990. Bidwill did not move to Phoenix until after 1990, so he did not follow the Cardinals there in 1988. From 1990 to 1996, he was a federal prosecutor in Phoenix. In 1996, he worked for Bob Dole's presidential campaign.

In Their Own Story

In October 2014, General Manager Steve Keim described Michael Bidwill as "the glue that holds the organization together." Quarterback Carson Palmer echoed this sentiment, noting, "It's easy to say it's the head coach or the GM. It's the owner... He doesn't want to be here when the media's here. He's not doing interviews left and right, but he's picked the right people to hire and he wants to win." This hands-off approach regarding daily roster decisions contrasted with Michael's active role in major strategic moves, such as supporting his Georgetown Prep classmate Brett Kavanaugh for the Supreme Court in July 2018 via official team channels. The legacy faced significant challenges in recent years; in 2023, former vice president Terry McDonough filed an arbitration complaint alleging gross misconduct, discrimination, and harassment by Bidwill. The organization disputed these claims as "wildly false," yet an April 2024 ruling ordered the Cardinals to pay McDonough $3,000,000 for defamation after falsely accusing him of extreme domestic violence.

Reader's Guide

While the Cardinals struggled to fill Sun Devil Stadium, Bidwill publicly stated that fans would respond in greater numbers if given a better environment. He additionally emphasized that the team could not compete without the revenue streams a new stadium would bring. The Cardinals have sold out all 100 games played at State Farm Stadium (originally University of Phoenix Stadium) since the stadium opened in 2006. They sold out 12 total games in 18 seasons at Sun Devil Stadium. In their first nine seasons at State Farm Stadium, the Cardinals won their division three times, earned three playoff berths and finished .500 or better six times. They had two seasons of .500 or better in their first 18 seasons (1988–2006) since their arrival in Arizona from St. Louis. In 2007, Bill Bidwill named Michael as team president and ceded most day-to-day control over the Cardinals to Michael, making his son operating head of the franchise. In October 2014, Cardinals general manager Steve Keim called Bidwill 'the glue that holds the organization together.' Quarterback Carson Palmer said 'It's easy to say it's the head coach or the GM. It's the owner,' Palmer said. 'And you would never know it. He doesn't want to be here when the media's here. He's not doing interviews left and right, but he's picked the right people to hire and he wants to win. … He doesn't have a hand in every decision, cutting this guy, bringing in this guy. He's hired the right people, and he knows it.' In July 2018, Bidwill announced his support for longtime friend and fellow Georgetown Prep classmate Brett Kavanaugh as a Supreme Court Justice nominee. The move generated controversy, as Bidwill used the Arizona Cardinals website and social media outlets to voice his support. This came just two months after NFL owners voted to restrict NFL players' ability to protest during the national anthem. After his father's death in October 2019, Bidwill succeeded his father as chairman. He is only the sixth principal owner in franchise history; it was founded in 1898 in Chicago as an independent team and was a charter member of the NFL in 1920.

Did You Know?

• Bidwill is the third generation of his family to own the Cardinals; his grandfather Charles bought the team in 1933.
• He served as a federal prosecutor in Phoenix from 1990 to 1996 before joining the Cardinals.
• Bidwill was named team president in 2007, when his father ceded most day-to-day control.
• In 2014, he was named chair of the NFL's new conduct committee.
• An arbitration ruling in April 2024 ordered the Cardinals to pay $3,000,000 for defamation in response to a former executive's complaint.