Jonathan A. Kraft is the eldest son of Robert Kraft, the owner of the New England Patriots. He is the president of the New England Patriots and Major League Soccer’s New England Revolution franchise.
Jonathan Kraft is also the President of the Kraft Group, the family company that includes the Krafts’ business interests.
The 53-year-old Jonathan Kraft is a graduate of Williams College and Harvard Business School. Like his father, he was born in Brookline, Massachusetts. He is married to Patricia Lipoma, and the couple has three children together.
Here is what you need to know:
1. Kraft’s Estimated Net Worth is $10 Million
Celebrity Net Worth estimates that Kraft’s personal estimated net worth is $10 million. However, that could be on the low end as his father is worth an estimated $5.2 billion, according to Forbes.
Robert Kraft is ranked #102 on the Forbes 400 and #298 on the magazine’s 2016 Billionaires list. He’s #101 on the U.S. Billionaires list for Forbes.
According to Kraft’s company bio, Jonathan Kraft graduated from Williams College in 1986 and earned his MBA at Harvard Business School in 1990. He started his business career at Bain & Co. before joining his father’s company.
Jonathan Kraft is currently on the Board of Dean’s Advisors for Harvard Business School and chairs the Massachusetts General Hospital finance committee. As President of the Kraft group, he oversees day-to-day operations of the company.
He is often seen in a luxury box, taking in just about every Patriots game with his dad.
2. He & His Wife Patti Have 3 Kids Together
Jonathan Kraft and his wife, Patti, married in 1995. Patti converted to Judaism and the couple was married in a Jewish ceremony at the Chestnut Hill home of Jonathan’s parents, Robert and Myra.
Jonathan and Patti, an attorney who graduated from Harvard University, are the proud parents of three children, two sons and one daughter.
The couple’s eldest son, Harry Kraft, is a quarterback at Dartmouth College in Massachusetts.
“He’s as hard-working a guy as I’ve ever had,” Dartmouth College football coach Buddy Teevens said of Harry Kraft back in August.
Their daughter Sadie, graduated from The Rivers School in 2017, according to The Boston Globe.
Their youngest son, Jacob, is still in high school.
3. His Mom, Myra, Passed Away in 2011
Myra Kraft passed away in 2011 after a long battle with cancer.
“Words cannot express the deep sorrow that we feel in learning of the passing of Myra Hiatt Kraft. Myra passed away early this morning after a courageous battle with cancer. We are all heartbroken. The global philanthropic community and the New England Patriots family have suffered a great loss,” the Kraft family said in a statement on July 20, 2011.
“My mother. She lived her life looking at the world through empathetic eyes,” Jonathan Kraft said at his mother’s funeral, held at Temple Emanuel in Newton, Massachusetts, according to NFL.com.
Myra Kraft was the president of the New England Patriots Charitable Foundation and also managed the Robert and Myra Kraft Family Foundation.
Mrs. Kraft was just 68 years old. She died about one month after celebrating her 48th wedding anniversary with Robert.
4. He Called Donald Trump a ‘Friend’ & Defended Tom Brady’s Right to Free Speech
In a November interview with The Sports Hub, Jonathan Kraft stressed that the Patriots organization never endorsed Donald Trump. However, it is known that Tom Brady and Bill Belichick are friends with Trump. In the last days of the election, Trump even claimed that Belichick wrote him a letter, endorsing him.
“Everybody is entitled. It’s freedom of speech. No matter which side, from town councilor up to President, you have a right,” Jonathan Kraft told The Sports Hub in November.
In the February interview with The Sports Hub, Jonathan Kraft said that he’s a friend of Trump’s as well, but he doesn’t support everything that the President does.
“I’m on different sides of issues with Donald Trump, but he’s still a friend and someone I support. He’s our president,” he told the outlet.
Jonathan Kraft also said that the only reason why he missed the Patriots’ trip to the White House after Super Bowl XLIX was his hip surgery which he underwent a week before; it didn’t have anything to do with President Barack Obama, despite rumors to the contrary.
5. Rumor Has it, He Still Holds a Grudge Against Massachusetts Politicians Who Kept the Patriots From Building a Stadium in South Boston
After buying the New England Patriots in the 1990s, the Krafts had envisioned moving the team from Foxborough to Boston, Massachusetts. At the time, they wanted to build a football stadium near the South Boston waterfront. However, the effort didn’t pan out and a Boston Globe profile notes that Jonathan Kraft still holds a grudge against former Governor William Weld and the late Boston Mayor Thomas Menino.
The Kraft’s business not only took a hit because they lost millions on the effort, but their public image suffered too because of their complaints.
“I don’t know if it’s anti-Semitism, or anti-Kraftism, or anti-footballism, but it’s really strange,” Jonathan Kraft told the Boston Globe at the time. He also didn’t like how the Globe covered the situation.
“I don’t think it was personal,” Jack Connors, a friend of Kraft’s, told the Globe in 2015. “I just think it was the parsimonious nature of Massachusetts politics and government.”
The Krafts also attempted to move the Patriots to Hartford, Connecticut in 1998, but the Krafts stopped it when the State of Massachusetts agreed to pay $70 million in improvements to Foxborough.
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Jonathan Kraft, Robert’s Son: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know