Owner of the Oakland Raiders Dies at Age Eighty-Two

Al Davis, owner of the Oakland Raiders, died Saturday at the age of eighty-two. Davis became head coach of the Raiders in 1963 and took over as commissioner of the AFL in April 1966. Davis returned to the Raiders as a managing partner with a 10% share of the franchise after serving as commissioner of the AFL.

By the mid-1970’s Davis had full control of the franchise. In 1982, Davis successfully sued to relocate the team from Oakland to Los Angeles, and then moved the team back to Oakland abruptly in 1995.

Prior to his death, Davis stated in interviews that his wife, Carol, and son, Mark, would inherit the team.

See Sam Farmer, Al Davis Dies at 82; Oakland Raiders Owner Transformed Team, Los Angeles Times, Oct. 8, 2011.