The Friedkin Group

The Friedkin Group is a privately held American holding company controlled by the Friedkin family and headquartered in Houston, Texas. It grew out of the business built by Joseph Friedkin, who founded a regional Toyota distributorship in the late 1960s; that operation, Gulf States Toyota, remains the group's foundational asset and one of the largest privately held companies in the Houston area. Gulf States Toyota distributes Toyota and Lexus vehicles and parts to a large network of independent dealers across a multi-state region of the southern United States, and the group has extended its automotive interests into related ventures in vehicle distribution, finance and services. Beyond automobiles, The Friedkin Group has diversified into entertainment and media, hospitality, and sports ownership. Its most visible consumer-facing holdings are football clubs: the group acquired Italian Serie A side AS Roma in 2020 and, after a prolonged takeover process, completed the purchase of English Premier League club Everton in December 2024. Dan Friedkin, Joseph's son, serves as chairman and CEO of the group and is the public face of its sports and philanthropic activities. The group is not listed on any stock exchange and does not publish detailed financial statements, so its scale is known mainly through the size of its operating companies and the value of its sports assets. It positions itself as a long-term, family-run owner that holds businesses for decades rather than trading them, and it has become increasingly international in the 2020s through its European football investments. Because it is private and family-controlled, leadership and strategy are set internally rather than through public shareholder processes.

The Friedkin Group traces its origins to Joseph Friedkin, a Houston businessman who in the late 1960s secured the rights to distribute Toyota vehicles in a multi-state region of the southern United States. That business, Gulf States Toyota, was established as an independent distributorship rather than a factory-owned operation, and it grew alongside Toyota's expansion in the American market. Because Toyota's US distribution was organized through regional private distributors, Gulf States Toyota became a substantial enterprise in its own right, handling vehicle and parts logistics for a large dealer network and becoming one of the largest private companies in the Houston area. Over the following decades the family consolidated its various holdings under The Friedkin Group, a private holding company that manages the automotive distribution business alongside other investments. Dan Friedkin, Joseph's son, rose through the organization and became chairman and CEO, steering the group toward diversification beyond automobiles. The group's most prominent diversification came in sports. In 2020 The Friedkin Group reached an agreement to acquire AS Roma, the Rome-based Serie A football club, marking its entry into major European football ownership. The acquisition made the family one of a small number of American owners in Italian top-flight football and raised the group's international profile considerably. In the 2020s the group pursued a second English football acquisition. After a lengthy process involving earlier negotiations and a period in which the deal appeared uncertain, The Friedkin Group completed its purchase of Everton FC, the Liverpool-based Premier League club, in December 2024. The takeover made the group one of the few owners with controlling interests in clubs in both Italy and England. Throughout its history the group has remained privately held and family-controlled, avoiding public listings and keeping its financial details largely out of the public record. Its strategy has emphasized long-term ownership of operating businesses, and its recent history shows a willingness to deploy capital into high-profile sports and entertainment assets in Europe while retaining its core American automotive distribution base.

• 2024

  The group completes its takeover of English Premier League club Everton FC.

• 2020

  The Friedkin Group acquires Italian Serie A club AS Roma.

• 1969

  Joseph Friedkin establishes Gulf States Toyota, a regional Toyota distributorship based in Houston.

A long-term, family-controlled holding company that builds and holds automotive distribution, sports and hospitality businesses, with a growing international profile through European football ownership.

• Gulf States Toyota

  Regional distributor of Toyota and Lexus vehicles and parts to independent dealers in the southern United States.

• AS Roma

  Italian Serie A football club owned by the group since 2020.

• Everton FC

  English Premier League football club acquired by the group in December 2024.

• 2026-10-09

  Friedkin Group explores sale of controlling interest in Everton FC[5]弗里德金集团探讨出售埃弗顿足球俱乐部控股权bbc.co.uk

  Reported: 2026-10-09

  Everton owners The Friedkin Group said in a statement that it is exploring new investment options for Everton Football Club, including the potential sale of a controlling interest, less than two years after completing its takeover of the club in 2024 in a deal believed to be worth in excess of £400m. TFG said it will only entertain interest from parties it strongly believes will be the right stewards to take the club forward.

1. 1The Friedkin Groupen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Gulf States Toyotaen.wikipedia.org
3. 3AS Romaen.wikipedia.org
4. 4Everton FCen.wikipedia.org
5. 5弗里德金集团探讨出售埃弗顿足球俱乐部控股权bbc.co.uk