Who owns the Kansas City Royals in 2026? The short answer is Kansas City businessman John Sherman, who has controlled the American League club since late 2019.
Sherman bought the Royals from the Glass family for roughly $1 billion, ending two decades of Glass family control that began back in 2000.
Since taking over, Sherman has reshaped the franchise both on the field and off it, including a headline making push for a brand new downtown ballpark.
But who exactly is John Sherman, how much is his ownership group actually worth today, and is he really the right person to lead the Royals into their next era? Here is everything fans are searching for, verified and up to date.
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Who Is John Sherman, The Owner Of The Kansas City Royals
John Sherman is a Kansas City based businessman who built his fortune in the energy sector as founder of Inergy, a natural gas and propane company he later sold. He also spent time as a minority owner of the Cleveland Guardians before turning his attention to his hometown team.
Sherman grew up in Kansas and has been open about wanting to keep the Royals rooted in Kansas City for the long run. That local connection was a major reason Major League Baseball owners approved his purchase so quickly.
Today Sherman serves as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Royals, the person with final say on stadium plans, front office hires, and the direction of the franchise.
How Much Did John Sherman Pay For The Kansas City Royals
Sherman agreed to buy the Royals from the family of David Glass in August 2019, in a deal reported at approximately $1 billion. Major League Baseball owners unanimously approved the sale that November, and Sherman formally took control soon after.
That price made the Royals one of the more notable ownership changes in baseball at the time, since the club had stayed under Glass family control since the year 2000.
Sherman did not buy the team alone. He assembled a group of roughly twenty investors, most with genuine ties to Kansas City, a structure meant to keep the club locally anchored for good.
Kansas City Royals Quick Facts
| Team | Kansas City Royals |
| Current Owner | John Sherman |
| Purchase Price | About $1.0 billion (2019) |
| Current Valuation | $1.64 billion (Forbes, March 2026) |
| Founded | 1969 |
| League | Major League Baseball, American League Central |
| Stadium | Kauffman Stadium, with a new downtown ballpark planned |
| Ownership Group | John Sherman and about twenty local investors |
Inside The Kansas City Royals Ownership Group
Sherman did not do this deal solo. He put together an ownership group that includes several named co investors alongside dozens of smaller local partners.
Among the named partners are Paul Edgerley, who also holds a stake in the Boston Celtics and the Italian soccer club AS Roma, and Kent McCarthy, who is tied to the Sacramento Kings ownership group. The Dunn family, of the Kansas City construction firm JE Dunn, is also part of the group.
On the baseball side, day to day operations run through President of Baseball Operations J.J. Picollo, who reports directly to Sherman, while Matt Quatraro serves as field manager.
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A Timeline Of Kansas City Royals Ownership History
The Royals have only had a handful of true controlling owners in franchise history, which is unusual for a Major League Baseball club.
Pharmaceutical executive Ewing Kauffman is awarded an expansion franchise for Kansas City.
The Royals move into their permanent home, then known as Royals Stadium.
Ewing Kauffman dies and control shifts to a charitable foundation trust set up to keep the team local.
David Glass purchases the club from the foundation for about $96 million.
John Sherman agrees to purchase the Royals from the Glass family for about $1 billion.
The Royals reveal plans for a new open air ballpark at Crown Center alongside partner Hallmark Cards.
What Is The Kansas City Royals Current Valuation
According to Forbes 2026 team valuations, the Royals are worth about $1.64 billion, ranking 27th among the thirty Major League Baseball franchises.
That figure jumped 26 percent in a single year, driven largely by momentum around the new ballpark project. Since Sherman took over in 2019, the franchise value has grown at roughly 4 percent a year on average.
Forbes also reports the club generated about $330 million in revenue in 2025, with operating income near $25 million, and a debt to value ratio around 17 percent once stadium debt is included.
Kauffman Stadium And The New Downtown Ballpark Plan
The Royals have played at Kauffman Stadium since 1973, one of the most respected ballparks in the sport thanks to its fountains and open outfield views. Their lease there runs through the end of the 2030 season.
In 2026 the club settled a long running search by announcing an open air ballpark at Crown Center, a downtown site being redeveloped in partnership with Hallmark Cards, which is relocating its headquarters to make room for the project. You can read the full official ballpark announcement on MLB.com.
The project carries an initial budget near $1.9 billion for the stadium itself, funded through a mix of Sherman’s ownership group, city funds, and support through the state’s Show Me Sports Investment Act, inside a broader $3 billion district that could total roughly three billion dollars once finished. Construction could begin as soon as 2027, with an opening targeted for the 2030 season.
Who Runs Kansas City Royals Baseball Operations
While Sherman controls the business side, the baseball decisions run through President of Baseball Operations J.J. Picollo, who took the role after longtime executive Dayton Moore departed the front office.
Picollo built his career inside the Royals organization and has focused on developing homegrown pitching and improving the farm system, a strategy Sherman has publicly backed with increased payroll spending compared to the Glass family era.
Is John Sherman A Good Owner: Is The Kansas City Royals Ownership Really Worth It
Fans genuinely disagree on this one, and both sides have real evidence behind them.
On the positive side, Sherman kept the team locally owned when an outside buyer could easily have moved the Royals to a bigger market.
He has raised payroll compared to the final Glass years, backed a competitive rebuild that reached the postseason in 2023 and again more recently, and secured a genuinely ambitious downtown ballpark deal that could reshape the franchise for decades.
His investor group is also unusually transparent about local ties compared to many private equity heavy ownership groups around the league.
On the negative side, critics point out the Royals still rank near the bottom of MLB in overall valuation and revenue, meaning payroll will likely stay modest for a small market team no matter who owns the club.
The public funding fight over the new ballpark also dragged on for years and required a second site search after an earlier Crossroads proposal fell apart at the ballot box. Some fans also question whether $600 million in public money for a private billion dollar business is truly a fair trade for taxpayers.
Weighing both sides, most independent coverage from outlets like the Kansas City Star and ESPN frames Sherman as a steady, locally invested owner whose biggest test will be whether the new ballpark actually turns into sustained on field success.
Are The Kansas City Royals For Sale In 2026
No credible reporting suggests John Sherman is looking to sell the Kansas City Royals in 2026. If anything, the opposite is true, since Sherman just committed his ownership group to an $800 million minimum contribution toward the new downtown ballpark, a financial commitment that only makes sense for an owner planning to stay for the long haul.
Sherman has also repeatedly framed the ballpark project as fulfilling founder Ewing Kauffman’s original wish that the Royals remain Kansas City’s team forever, language that points toward continuity rather than an exit.
For a closer look at how ownership works across other major sports, see our breakdown of who owns the NFL.
Frequently Asked Questions About Kansas City Royals Ownership
Who currently owns the Kansas City Royals?
John Sherman is the controlling owner and Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Kansas City Royals, having purchased the club from the Glass family in 2019 for roughly $1 billion.
How much is John Sherman worth?
Sherman’s personal fortune stems mainly from founding and later selling Inergy, an energy company, though his exact net worth is not publicly disclosed with precision by any major financial outlet.
Did the Glass family really own the Royals before Sherman?
Yes. David Glass, a former Walmart chief executive, purchased the Royals from the Ewing Kauffman charitable foundation trust in 2000 and controlled the club until selling to Sherman nearly two decades later. For similar ownership stories in the state, our guide to who owns the St Louis Cardinals covers Missouri’s other Major League Baseball franchise.
Where can I find official, verified Royals ownership history?
The most reliable public record of Royals ownership history is maintained on the team’s Wikipedia page, which cites contemporary news coverage of every ownership change since the franchise was founded in 1969.
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