Saints owner Gayle Benson debuts in Forbes 400 list



By Jennifer Larino | NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune

Saints and Pelicans owner Gayle Benson made her debut in this year's Forbes 400 list, an annual ranking of the wealthiest Americans. Benson is the only person from Louisiana to make the list.

Forbes, which released its ranking on Wednesday (Oct. 3), put Benson's net worth at $2.8 billion, placing her 298th on the list. Benson, 71, shared the 298th spot with three others on the list with equal net worth -- Oprah Winfrey; and California's John Fisher, son of Gap Inc. founders Donald Fisher and Doris F. Fisher; and Richard Peery, a California real estate developer.

Benson became majority owner of New Orleans' NFL and NBA teams after her husband, Tom Benson, died in March. The transition followed a prolonged dispute with Tom Benson's daughter and grandchildren over control of the family assets. The dispute ended with a confidential settlement days before the matter was set to go to trial in early 2017.

Gayle Benson's 2018 ranking is one spot behind Tom Benson's 2017 ranking, though she remains the only Louisiana representative and the state's wealthiest resident, according to Forbes. ...

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