Betting Online on the Denver Broncos – 2024

Ownership

Joe Ellis / Estate of Pat Bowlen: (2019 – Present)

Joe Ellis had worked for the Denver Broncos since 1983 when he was hired as
the Director of Marketing. Ellis went to work in the league offices from 1990 to
1997 before returning to Denver in 1998 as the Executive Vice President of
business operations.

The Colorado native was promoted to president in 2011 and took over CEO
duties in 2014 after Pat Bowlen was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.
Following Bowlen’s death, Joe Ellis has remained in control of the franchise,
despite the Denver Broncos still being owned by the Bowlen family.

Pat Bowlen: (1984 – 2024)

The legendary Bowlen family bought the Denver Broncos in 1984, one year after
the franchise drafted John Elway. Pat Bowlen would become the principal owner
and CEO, though his two brothers, John and Bill, and sister, Marybeth Bowlen,
were involved in the purchase as well.

At a retreat at the Bohemian Grove in 1999, Pat mistakenly let Edgar Kaiser
know that he was letting the Broncos’ most legendary QB, John Elway, buy a 10%
share of the franchise. Since Kaiser had first right to refusal of any stake in
the team being sold, the previous owner sued to be entitled to a 10% purchase at
the same terms that Elway received.

Kaiser was initially awarded a favorable ruling, but Bowlen won the appeal.
Under Pat’s ownership, Denver enjoyed one of the highest winning percentages in
all of football. His only losing season as the owner came in 2018. Bowlen passed
away on June 13, 2024, leaving control of the franchise to his estate.

Edgar Kaiser: (1981 – 1984)

Edgar Kaiser was a wealthy financier and grandson of famed American
industrialist and “father of modern American shipbuilding” Henry J. Kaiser. He
purchased a controlling stake in the Denver franchise in 1981. However, the
American-Canadian businessman did not hold onto the team for long.

In 1984, Kaiser sold his 60.8% share in the Broncos to the Bowlen family,
though the sales agreement gave him right of first purchase of any sale of
shares in the organization going forward. This agreement eventually resulted in
a lawsuit when Pat Bowlen offered John Elway a 10% ownership stake years later.

Gerald Phipps: (1961 – 1981)

Gerald Phipps, the president of a successful construction company, purchased
the Denver Broncos franchise before their second season in the AFL. Several
years later, a group of the organization’s minority owners joined together with
the intention of selling their shares in the team to investors in Atlanta, who
would consider moving the Broncos.

Allan and Gerald Phipps stepped in to take on a larger ownership stake,
agreeing to purchase Mile High Stadium (Bears Stadium at the time) as well,
ensuring the franchise stayed in Denver. As a response, season ticket sales
nearly tripled the following year. Phipps’ tenure saw the Broncos reached their
first playoff birth and super bowl in the 1977-1978 season.

From 1970 (post-merger) through 1981, Gerald served as chairman of the NFL’s
finance committee. He sold the team in 1981 and became the first non-player
inducted into the Broncos Ring of Fame four years later.

Bob Howsam: (1959 – 1961)

Bob Howsam founded the Denver Broncos, in part, due to desperation. The
successful baseball executive spent considerable amounts of money expanding Mile
High Stadium, in anticipation of bringing major league baseball to Denver. When
his plans for the Continental League fell through, he suddenly had a stadium too
large to support just a Triple-A baseball franchise. Howsam went about extending
the arena’s usefulness into football season.

Initially, the Broncos founder applied for an NFL expansion team. When that
offer was declined, Howsam joined the seven other owners in establishing the
AFL, in which the Denver Broncos were a charter franchise. After only one
season, however, the Howsam family sold their controlling interest to Gerald and
Allan Phipps.

Team Logos

Modern Bronco Head (1997 – Present)

The logo that’s currently used by the Broncos was designed by Nike in 1997.
The emblem is a stylized bronco’s head that appears to be sprinting. The outline
is drawn in royal blue and filled with white. The eye and mane are colored
orange.

“D” and Bronco (1970 – 1996)

The Broncos held a contest for a new logo in 1967. The winning design was
drawn by Edwin Taylor, who created the orange “D” logo, with a powerful horse
coming out of the inside of the letter, with steam billowing out of its nose.
Speaking of the previous logo, Taylor said, “I mean here’s this Bucking Bronco
that looks like its emaciated, I mean yeah and they played the way their emblem
looked.” The franchise put the new logo on their helmets and wrote the designer
a letter thanking him for his creation. Along with a letter of thanks, Taylor
received a shirt, hat, and two tickets to a game against the Chiefs.

A Player Standing on a Bronco (1962 – 1969)

Two years after being founded, the Broncos changed their team colors to
orange, royal blue, and white. At this time, they also updated the logo, while
borrowing certain features from the original. In this version, an orange bronco
is bucking, this time with a football player standing on its back. The player is
holding the reins in his left hand and holding a football in the other while
squatting on the leaping horse. The entire logo is outlined in royal blue.

Football Player on a Mustard Bronco (1960 – 1961)

In their debut season, the Denver Broncos wore white and mustard-yellow
jerseys with brown helmets and pants. Their earliest logo followed this color
scheme, with a large football player, seemingly using a toothpick while sitting
atop a bucking bronco. The player is wearing a yellow helmet and brown jersey,
and his face is adorned with a relaxed smile.

History of the Denver Broncos