Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper has landed near the top of Forbes’ latest look at America’s richest people, and he’s not just making the cut - he’s sitting comfortably among the country’s wealthiest billionaires.
Forbes released its annual “Forbes 400” list on Tuesday, Sept. 15, ranking the 400 richest Americans. Tepper checked in at No. 39 with an estimated net worth of $28.5 billion. That puts him $5 billion ahead of Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and makes him the second-richest NFL owner, trailing only Denver Broncos owner and Walmart heir Rob Walton.
In its billionaire profile, Forbes described Tepper as “arguably the greatest hedge fund manager of his generation.”
The 69-year-old built his fortune after founding Appaloosa Management in 1993, following an earlier stint in a high-ranking role at Goldman Sachs. Since purchasing the Carolina Panthers from founder Jerry Richardson in 2018, Tepper’s wealth has continued to climb. Forbes listed him at an estimated $11 billion in 2018, and that figure has risen every year since, more than doubling in the latest estimate.
Tepper’s time in Charlotte has also included bringing Major League Soccer to the city with Charlotte FC and donating tens of millions of dollars to charity across the Carolinas.
At the very top of the Forbes list is Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, whose estimated net worth is $908 billion. Jeff Bezos follows at $378 billion, with Larry Page, Michael Dell and Sergey Brin filling out the top five. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is sixth.
Los Angeles Clippers owner Steve Ballmer is ninth at $156 billion, putting him $12 billion ahead of Warren Buffett in 10th. Forbes also noted that the 2026 list was so packed with wealth that 590 American billionaires fell short of the top 400, including Oprah Winfrey, Beyoncé and Taylor Swift.
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