Dan Rooney, Football Hall of Famer and longtime owner of the Steelers, has passed away at age 84. The Rooney family has been a mainstay in the NFL for decades and primarily as the family running the successful Pittsburgh Steelers organization. Dan Rooney took over as the owner of the team from his father Art and he has since passed the leadership role to his son, Art Rooney II.
Rooney was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2000 for his contributions to the sport. He has long been credited with leading a diversity change in the NFL. The ‘Rooney Rule’ requires that NFL teams with head coach and general manager vacancies interview at least one minority candidate. Rooney was also the United States Ambassador to Ireland and was a co-founder of the Ireland-related fundraiser ‘The Ireland Fund’.
The team made the announcement.
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) April 13, 2017
His son has been the one running the team for a few years now while Dan was the owner and figure head of the team. He has been with the Steelers all through their storied NFL success being a part of six Super Bowl teams and eight AFC Championship squads.
