Michael Jordan joins the billionaires club

Charlotte Bobcats owner Michael Jordan (R) and fiancee Yvette Prieto attend the 11th annual Michael Jordan Celebrity Invitational gala at the Aria Resort & Casino at CityCenter March 30, 2011 in Las Vegas, Nevada.PHOTO| ETHAN MILLER

What you need to know:

  • The 52-year-old owner of the Charlotte Hornets, according to Forbes, is worth  Michael Jordan is worth $1 billion (Sh91 billion) joining the rich list as the 1,741st richest person in the world. The amount Jordan makes in a year now is more than the money he made in total salary during his NBA career.

  • “Most of his cash comes from Nike payouts on his iconic brand Air Jordan,” wrote Forbes.

  • “The Jordan brand grossed an estimated $2.25 billion (Sh190 billion) in 2013, earning his Airness some $90 million (Sh8.1 billion). But his most valuable asset is his stake in the Charlotte Hornets, worth more than $500 million (Sh45.5 billion).

One of, if not the most famous basketball player in the world, Michael Jordan, has joined the billionaires club, a historical feat making him the first athlete in history to become a dollar billionaire.

The former Chicago Bulls small forward was one of the record 290 newcomers who joined the Forbes billionaires list in the last year.

It has been a long time coming for the man whose bio in the NBA website reads: By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player of all time. Although, a summary of his basketball career and influence on the game inevitably fails to do it justice, as a phenomenal athlete with a unique combination of fundamental soundness, grace, speed, power, artistry, improvisational ability and an unquenchable competitive desire, Jordan single-handedly redefined the NBA superstar.

Sports mogul

The 52-year-old owner of the Charlotte Hornets, according to Forbes, is worth  Michael Jordan is worth $1 billion (Sh91 billion) joining the rich list as the 1,741st richest person in the world. The amount Jordan makes in a year now is more than the money he made in total salary during his NBA career.

“Most of his cash comes from Nike payouts on his iconic brand Air Jordan,” wrote Forbes.

“The Jordan brand grossed an estimated $2.25 billion (Sh190 billion) in 2013, earning his Airness some $90 million (Sh8.1 billion). But his most valuable asset is his stake in the Charlotte Hornets, worth more than $500 million (Sh45.5 billion).

When ex-Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer bought the Los Angeles Clippers for a stunning $2 billion, values of all NBA teams skyrocketed, creating three new billionaires. Jordan’s old boss Jerry Reinsdorf, owner of the Chicago Bulls, joined the list with a fortune of $1.3 billion, and Houston Rockets owner Leslie Alexander boosted his net worth to $1.6 billion.”

Jordan is making big bucks despite having retired 12 years ago.

According to ESPN, Jordan’s business manager Estee Portnoy refused to comment on the Forbes list saying; “We did not comment nor participate in the financial guesstimates.”

ESPN reports that the billionaires list is packed with sports owners: The richest team owner is Steve Ballmer, who bought the Los Angeles Clippers for $2 billion last year. Ballmer is the 35th richest person in the world with a net worth of $21.5 billion. His former Microsoft colleague Paul Allen comes in at number two among team owners. The Seattle Seahawks and Portland Trail Blazers owner is the 51st richest person in the world, Forbes says, with a net worth of $17.5 billion.

Phil Anschutz, who owns the Los Angeles Kings and the L.A. Galaxy and Houston Dynamo of MLS, as well as the Staples Center, comes in as the third richest sports owner with a net worth of $11.8 billion.

Other majority team owners who made the top 400 richest included Brooklyn Nets owner Mikhail Prokhorov (number 125, $9.9 billion), Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich (number 137, $9.1 billion), Miami Heat owner Micky Arison (number 191, $7.1 billion), Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross (number 216, $6.5 billion), St. Louis Rams, Denver Nuggets, Colorado Avalanche and Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke (number 225, $6.3 billion), Orlando Magic owner Rich DeVos (number 259, $5.7 billion), Detroit Tigers and Red Wings owner Michael Ilitch (number 330, $4.8 billion), Jacksonville Jaguars and Fulham FC owner Shahid Khan (number 330, $4.8 billion), Washington Nationals owner Ted Lerner (number 330, $4.8 billion), New York Knicks and Rangers owners the Dolans (number 381, $4.3 billion), New England Patriots and Revolution owner Robert Kraft (number 381, $4.3 billion), and Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones (number 393, $4.2 billion).

According to Forbes, aside from Jordan, the Silicon Valley kids also made a grand entry into the billionaire’s list.

“Garrett Camp, Travis Kalanick and Ryan Graves, the trio of early Uber members, have seen plenty of bad publicity over the last year. India temporarily banned their service, Spain shut it down entirely, and an Uber executive brought on a torrent of criticism when he suggested digging up dirt on the personal lives of journalists,” wrote Forbes. “None of the news has scared away investors who have put over $4 billion into the company already, valuing it at $41.2 billion. Camp and Kalanick are now worth an estimated $5.3 billion, and first-employee Graves is worth $1.4 billion.”

The youngest newcomers to the list are Bobby Murphy and Evan Spiegel, the Snapchat founders who brazenly turned down $3 billion in cash from Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg for their disappearing photo app in 2013. Smart move: Snapchat is now reportedly getting offers that would value the company at $19 billion, and Forbes estimates Murphy and Spiegel are worth $1.5 billion apiece.

The richest first-timer on the list is Maria Franca Fissolo, the widow of Nutella king Michele Ferrero. She shares her $23.4 billion fortune with her family, and her son Giovanni is CEO of the Ferrero Group, which owns the brands Nutella, Kinder, Ferrero Rocher and Tic Tacs.