August 15th, 2008 
Stephen Rhodes 
Posted in 
For some time, the Rooney brothers – Dan, Art Jr., Tim, John and Pat – have been finding a way of abiding by the NFL rules regarding the ownership of their racetrack-casinos, as well as the Pittsburgh Steelers; the aforementioned Rooneys have a meeting with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell next Thursday, according to Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, so they can iron out the ownership issues.
Current NFL rules do not allow team owners ownership of gambling interests; the Rooneys own a dog track in Florida and a horse track in New York. Both facilities have both added some type of casino gambling over the past several years; Dan Rooney and his son, team president Art Rooney II have been talking to other potential investors so the aforementioned Rooneys can become principle owners. Each of the 5 brothers own 16% of the club’s stock while the McGinley holds the remaining 20%.
Some of the brothers want to sell and have lined up a potential buyer in Stanley Druckenmiller, who is willing to buy a controlling interest but is not interested in minority ownership. Dan Rooney’s brother Art has divested himself from 90% of his racetrack stock and plans to do the same with the remainder; meanwhile, Tim and Pat have resigned from the Steelers board of directors. At the urging of Goodell, the brothers have retained former NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue as a consultant. The upcoming meeting between the Rooney brothers and Goodell should have some form of resolution; stay tuned to NFL Gridiron Gab as the developments here unfold and for all other current, up-to-date NFL news.
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