Replacing Daniel Snyder as the owner of the Commanders had only one way to go — and that was up. Talk about an easy act to follow. But the fans could have also grown restless quickly as the honeymoon period turns to: “What have you done for me lately.”
Commanders’ principal owner Josh Harris is not new to sports ownership. He is in the ownership groups of the NBA Philadelphia 76ers, the NHL New Jersey Devils, the Premier League’s Crystal Palace Football Club in London, and reportedly holds a minority stake in Joe Gibbs Racing. On top of that, his full-time job for decades was at the helm of Apollo Global Management until he left Apollo in 2022. Since then, Harris founded 26North, a next-generation alternatives asset management firm with an initial focus on private equity, credit and insurance solutions with more than $23 billion in assets under their management. This past week he bought a chain of gyms. His portfolio keeps growing. While his typical Sundays from September to hopefully early February are with his Commanders’ team, he spends his much of his weekdays and Saturdays with his other teams and 26North.
How Harris manages all of his businesses is by hiring top-notch executives, and Commanders’ GM, Adam Peters, was one of his first new hires. Peters is responsible for making great hires, and that is how the new organization was built. A system built on people with the same goals and a mission to works towards which is winning. Harris believes in accountability and that is stressed at each level.
“If I had to make every decision, then I wouldn’t be able to do any of this. My job is to manage talent, build a culture, and hold people accountable for decisions made working toward our mission. If you’re not doing things that contribute to creating an elite franchise — or business, then changes will be made.”
— Commanders’ owner Josh Harris on accountability in a talk at the University of Maryland with business students
While Harris hasn’t won any championships with his teams, he has received a taste of the playoffs. With teams in the New York City suburbs, in Philadelphia, London and the DC suburbs, he knows what it is like to deal with some of the harshest critics in the world — his own fanbases. Winning takes time, and he is a realist on that. He is in it to win it.
Growing up in Montgomery County, Maryland, and a big fan of the Washington Redskins as a child and beyond. Harris grew up watching Super Bowl wins and then the Snyder years happened. Obviously he wants to bring back greatness.
“Yeah, so I’m focused on our long-term goals, which is I want to be elite — and playing deep into the playoffs or competing for Super Bowls — season-in and season-out. And I’m focused on building, and I think this will be a better season than last year across the board.”
— Commanders’ owner Josh Harris said before the 2024 season
“Obviously, the identity that Dan [Quinn] and [General Manager] Adam [Peters] have been talking about of the team is front and center in terms of us being competitive. And obviously the record was dismal last year, and we better be better than that. But really, I think this is going to be a way better season for all of those things, and a lot of the intangibles. Jayden Daniels continues developing hopefully into what we think and all hope that and know that he can be.”
“I’ve learned a long time ago in sports, not to make like bold predictions, so I will not. This is sports, and I’ll leave that to the bettors in Vegas and other things, people who are much better at making predictions than I am. But for sure, we’re all going to have a much [more fun] time.”
In addition, Harris is not rushing his hiring of a team President. That spot is vacant for now. The team still has business to take care of on-and-off the field. There is your glimpse into the top of the Commanders.
