Who owns the Jets? Inside Woody Johnson's net worth, businesses and more to know

Woody Johnson has been at the helm of the Jets for a long time. The owner of the New York football team has seen a plethora of quarterbacks come and go, all trying to figure out a way to get the Jets to a Super Bowl. 

So far, no dice. 

New York not only has not been to a Super Bowl under Johnson's ownership, but the team hasn't made the playoffs for over a decade. The last time New York played postseason football was during the 2010 season. Johnson and Co. are hoping that changes in 2024, with star QB Aaron Rodgers getting his first full season leading the offense. 

Here is more to know about Johnson and his involvement with the Jets. 

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Who owns the Jets?

Woody Johnson is one of the co-owners of the Jets. He owns the team along with his younger brother, Christopher. The two have owned the team since 2000. 

Woody Johnson net worth

Johnson has an estimated net worth of $3.4 billion, according to Forbes. 

How did Woody Johnson make his money?

Johnson and Johnson

Johnson is the great-grandson of Robert Wood Johnson I, who was one of the three brothers to found Johnson & Johnson, a pharmaceutical company.

The Jets owners inherited the family fortune from the Johnson & Johnson company.

The Johnson Company, Inc.

Johnson used to serve as the chairman and CEO of The Johnson Company, Inc., which was a private investment firm. 

Woody Johnson politics

Johnson also has a career in politics. He started off as a donor to the Republicans, giving to the George W. Bush campaign in the late 1990s and early 2000s. He endorsed other Republicans such as John McCain, Mitt Romney and Donald Trump. 

When Trump was elected President of the United States in 2016, he nominated Johnson to become the United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom, despite Johnson not having any previous diplomatic experience. He was confirmed and sworn into the position in August 2017. 

Johnson served as the country's ambassador to the U.K. during Trump's tenure in the Oval Office. When Trump lost the 2020 election to Joe Biden, Johnson returned to the United States.  

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How much did Woody Johnson buy the Jets for?

In 2000, Johnson elected to get into the sports world. He purchased the New York football team for $635 million from the estate of previous owner Leon Hess, who died in 1999. 

At the time, the $635 million cost to buy the team was the third-highest price ever paid for a professional sports team and the highest for a New York professional sports team. 

Following his acquisition of the football team, Johnson moved the team to the Meadowlands Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. to share a stadium with the Giants. The stadium officially opened in 2010 and the facility was eventually renamed MetLife Stadium. 

Jets' record under Woody Johnson

Johnson has been the owner of the Jets since the 2000 season, meaning he has been at the very top of the organization for 25 years now. 

Under Johnson's ownership, the Jets have gone 170-222 as of games concluded on Week 5 of the 2024 NFL season. New York was 168-219 entering the 2024 campaign under Johnson and has gone 2-3 since. 

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In that span, the Jets have never appeared in a Super Bowl. The furthest the team has advanced in the NFL playoffs is back-to-back AFC Championship appearances during the 2009 and 2010 seasons, losing to the Colts and Steelers, respectively.   

Record as of Week 5