Business & Ball: Waltons, Walmart, and wins in the mile-high city

The Walton’s own the largest company in the U.S, and now they have their sights set on owning an NFL winner.

Transcript

00:00The Walton family knows a thing or two about being the biggest and they made that clear with

00:03their record-setting purchase of the Denver Broncos. In 2022, the Walton-Penner family bought

00:13the Denver Broncos for roughly $4.7 billion, which at the time was the highest paid price

00:19for any U.S. sports franchise. But the group, led by Rob Walton, is no stranger to big business.

00:24The Walton family, of course, owns Walmart, which in terms of revenue is the largest company in

00:29the United States. Walmart has topped the Fortune 500 list for 13 consecutive years. In 2024,

00:35it brought in more than $680 billion in revenue. The company has a market cap of around $800 billion

00:42and employs more than 2 million people across the globe. Now, while obviously not on the same scale

00:48as Walmart, the Waltons have had financial success with the Broncos too. According to Forbes, the value

00:53of the franchise has increased by roughly $800 million since the family took over. Revenue has

00:58increased as well. But one big financial miss? The contract of former quarterback Russell Wilson.

01:03After signing him to a five-year, $242 million deal in 2022, the Broncos released him just two years

01:09later. They actually paid him about $38 million to not play for them last season. However, the future

01:15looks bright for Denver and the Waltons after a playoff appearance last year, but we wouldn't count

01:20on a 13-year run atop the NFL. Walmart, however, seems poised to dominate for years to come.