Norma Hunt, widow of Kansas City Chiefs founder Lamar Hunt and mother of team owner Clark Hunt, has died. She was 85 years old.
Chiefs announced his death on Sunday via a statement from the Hunt family. Details of his death, including the cause, have not been announced.
“Our family is deeply saddened by the passing of our mother, Norma. She was a wonderful mother and an amazing woman who will be sorely missed by all who knew her. …
“Mom was staunchly devoted to her family and fiercely passionate about her family’s sports teams. She was with our father Lamar every step of the way – from merging the AFL and NFL to forming the Major League Soccer, of the World Tennis Championship, the North American Soccer League, and their founding investment in the Chicago Bulls. She was the only person we know who rivaled her love of the sport. Both found such joy together, whether at home or in the stands of stadiums around the world.”
Hunt was a full and visible member of the Chiefs family. According to the NFL, she was the only woman to have attended all 57 Super Bowls. She watched her Chiefs win the Super Bowl in February and had a ringside seat atop the party bus for the ensuing Victory Parade in Kansas City.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell released a statement mourning Hunt, who he described as “a significant presence in the NFL over the past seven decades.”
“Norma’s place in NFL history will forever be remembered by the Chiefs organization and the entire league,” Goodell’s statement read.
Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes wrote on Twitter: “Ms. Norma was the best.”
MLS’s FC Dallas, owned by the Hunt family, also mourned Hunt’s passing.
Hunt married Lamar in 1964, five years after co-founding the AFL as owner of founding member Dallas Texans. The Texans moved to Kansas City and became the Chiefs in 1963. The Chiefs then played in the first Super Bowl in 1967 against the Green Bay Packers with Norma present. Before her death, she watched Kansas City play in five Super Bowls, three of which they won.
“Kind, generous and always positive, Mom was one of a kind,” the Hunt family statement read. “Her joy and zeal for life was contagious. She loved caring for others and always had a word of encouragement. She was a loyal friend, an accomplished hostess and she had a rare ability to make sure everyone those she met felt valued and comfortable.”