Eddie DeBartolo Jr.

Lore & Background

DeBartolo was involved in the 1998 corruption case of former Louisiana governor Edwin Edwards. DeBartolo pleaded guilty to a charge of failing to report a felony and received a $1 million fine along with two years of probation in return for his testimony against Edwards. DeBartolo was fined by the NFL and barred from active control of the 49ers for a year. On February 18, 2020, President Donald Trump granted DeBartolo a presidential pardon.

Reader's Guide

DeBartolo was born and raised in Youngstown, Ohio, the son of Marie Patricia (Montani) and Edward J. DeBartolo Sr., a real estate developer. He went to high school at Cardinal Mooney. He developed shopping malls as part of a corporation founded by his father. During his 23 years owning the 49ers beginning in 1977, the team won five Super Bowls under coaches Bill Walsh and George Seifert: Super Bowl XVI in 1982, XIX in 1985, XXIII in 1989, XXIV in 1990, and XXIX in 1995.

According to 49ers quarterback Steve Young, DeBartolo's 'family approach' to running the team changed the landscape of the NFL. In 1991, DeBartolo arranged to sell the family-owned Pittsburgh Penguins to assist the DeBartolo Corporation after the real estate collapse of 1987. In 1992, DeBartolo was accused of sexual assault at his Menlo Park condo by a cocktail waitress; he denied wrongdoing, was never charged, but reportedly paid $200,000 to settle the case out of court.

DeBartolo could have returned to the team after his suspension, but instead ceded control of the franchise to his sister, Denise York, in 2000, in return for other parts of the family business empire. DeBartolo and his wife, Candy, have three daughters: Lisa, Nicole, and Tiffanie. In 2007, DeBartolo co-founded Brooks-DeBartolo Collegiate High School in Tampa, Florida with fellow Pro Football Hall of Fame member Derrick Brooks. DeBartolo also has a half-brother, Edward M. Kobel.

On December 1, 2024, Donald Trump nominated DeBartolo's son-in-law Chad Chronister as head of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration; Chronister withdrew his name a few days later.