Buffalo Bills owner and founder Ralph Wilson died on Tuesday at the age of 95. Bills CEO Russ Brandon announced Wilson’s passing.
“No one loved the game of football more than Ralph Wilson,” Brandon said, per Eye on Football.
Wilson, who owned the Bills for 54 years, was the oldest owner in the National Football League. He founded the Bills in 1959 and was one of the founding owners of the American Football League. He helped negotiate the AFL-NFL merger in 1970. Wilson was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2009.
The Bills captured AFL championships in 1964 and 1965 under Wilson. They were also a dominant force in the AFC during the 1990s, winning four consecutive AFC championships from 1990 to 1993.
In addition to his lasting impact on the NFL, Wilson also served in World War II as a member of the US Navy in the 1940s.
Wilson is the second co-founder of the AFL that has passed away in the last five months. Former Tennessee Titans owner Bud Adams died at age 90 back in October.
