Rooney family The Rooney family has been the majority owners and operators of the Pittsburgh Steelers football team in Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania since the formation of the franchise in 1933 . Art Rooney was the founder and owner of the team until his death in 1988 ; ownership of the team was then transferred to Art ' s oldest son , Dan Rooney . In the recent years more of the front office operations have been passed down by Dan Rooney to his son and team president , Art Rooney II . The more influential family members included : The Rooneys have been credited for much of the team ' s success . The fundamental approach of the Rooneys to managing the Steelers has been through patience and consistency , both of which the ownership is continuously given notoriety for . As proof of the team ' s stability , there have been only three head coaches employed since 1969 , by far the fewest number of any team in that time frame . Dan Rooney has made it a requirement for any team interviewing for a new head coach to interview a minority candidate , known as the " Rooney Rule " . Restructuring . In July 2008 the Rooney family went public with the plan to reorganize the ownership structure of the franchise . Each of the five Rooney brothers owns 16 % of the team , combining for 80 % , while another related family , the McGinelys , owns 20 % . Dan Rooney , chairman , stated that his four brothers are moving towards other non - football - related business ventures and he is in talks with them to buy out their shares . However , the other four brothers believe Dan undervalued their shares , and hired Goldman Sachs to give them an estimate on the team . The estimate by Goldman Sachs valued the team between $ 800 million and $ 1 . 2 billion . One potential buyer has been identified , Stanley Druckenmiller , the Pittsburgh billionaire who is the chairman of Duquesne Capital Management and a former money manager for George Soros . Talks to restructure the ownership have been going on for two years to comply with NFL ownership policies and ensure ownership and operation under the Rooney family . The four brothers ' ventures with family race tracks that allow slot machines violate NFL rules of ownership with revenue from gambling enterprises . The ownership structure also violated the NFL rule stating that at least one individual must own 30 % of the team to be principal owner , and no individual owns at least 30 % of the team . The team does not expect the negotiations to have any effect on the players or fans . NFL owners unanimously approved the restructuring of ownership on December 17 , 2008 , with Dan & Art II getting the mandated 30 % stake . Meanwhile , brothers Timothy and Patrick ( the ones who own race tracks with slot machines , which violate NFL ownership rules ) selling their shares outright , while Art Jr . , John , and the McGinley family selling some shares but retaining smaller ownership roles , with the brothers reducing their shares from 16 % to 6 % and the McGinley family reducing their shares from 20 % to 10 % . Also coming on as partners are Pilot Corporation & Pilot Travel Centers president Jim Haslam III ( son of founder Jim Haslam Jr . and brother of Tennessee governor Bill Haslam ) , Legendary Pictures president & CEO Thomas Tull , and the Paul family of Pittsburgh & Los Angeles ( who are primarily involved with Pittsburgh - based Ampco Pittsburgh Corporation and serve on numerous boards , including UPMC and Pitt ) , each getting a 16 % stake in the team . Dan Rooney mentioned he has no ill will towards Druckenmiller , mentioning he ' s a great Steelers fan and wishes he remains one . The Steelers later announced on March 23 , 2009 , that they added three more investors to the team , the most notable of which is Hall of Fame wide receiver John Stallworth . The other two investors added were GTCR chairman Bruce V . Rauner and the Varischetti family of Brockway , Pennsylvania , which owns several nursing home s and a commercial real estate business . The deal to add all six new investors is expected to be finalized in May 2009 .