Pittsburgh Steelers owner Dan Rooney died on Thursday, the team announced. He was 84.
No cause of death was released.
Rooney was admitted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2000. He served as general manager of the club from 1975-2003.
Rooney's father, Art, purchased the Steelers in 1933 and the family has run the team since that time.
Pittsburgh has won six Super Bowl titles under the family's leadership.
"Few men have contributed as much to the National Football League as Dan Rooney," NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement.
Rooney led the charge of identifying minority head-coaching candidates while leading the league's diversity meeting. The edict that teams with openings must interview at least one minority candidate became known as the "Rooney Rule."
When the Steelers needed a coach after the resignation of Bill Cowher following the 2006, they hired Mike Tomlin, the first black coach in franchise history.
Rooney also was a key figure in helping end the 57-day players' strike in 1982.
More recently, Rooney served as US Ambassador to Ireland from 2009-12.
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