These sports figures gave money to 2016 presidential candidates – CBSSports.com

Ohio State coach Urban Meyer’s endorsement of John Kasich this week is just the latest example of a sports figure supporting a presidential candidate this primary season.

Jeb Bush and Chris Christie were the most popular recipients of NFL donations. But like so many who donated to Bush and Christie, the NFL’s money didn’t mean a thing in the year of Donald Trump.

Bush received at least $1.2 million in donations from NFL owners, according to public financing records located on OpenSecrets.org. Jets owner Woody Johnson was the national finance chairman for Bush’s campaign, which also got support from, among others, Peyton and Eli Manning and NCAA president Mark Emmert.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and Hall of Famer Roger Staubach were among those who donated to Christie. Houston Texans owner Bob McNair poured in more than $3 million to six Republican campaigns.

In the NBA, Hillary Clinton has dominated donations, receiving money from commissioner Adam Silver and basketball legend Magic Johnson. The Milwaukee Bucks’ president, general manager and coach all gave to Clinton.

Marlene Ricketts, the matriarch of the family that owns the Chicago Cubs, has funded about $5 million to super political action committees (Super PACs) for Republican candidates. She gave $3 million to a PAC that’s airing ads against Trump, who responded with a tweet in late February that read: “I hear the Ricketts family, who own the Chicago Cubs, are secretly spending money against me. They better be careful, they have a lot to hide!”

I hear the Rickets family, who own the Chicago Cubs, are secretly spending $’s against me. They better be careful, they have a lot to hide!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 22, 2016

Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts told the Chicago Tribune this month, “It’s a little surreal when Donald Trump threatens your mom. The fact is whether it’s my mom or my dad on his Ending Spending (PAC) or my sister on (supporting) marriage equality, or my brothers on what they do, or what we do with the team, we’re pretty much an open book. … Look, if we had something to hide, you guys would’ve found it by now I’m sure.”

So who from the sports world is supporting Trump? No donation matches were found during an extensive search of people who work in sports. Keep in mind, Trump is financing 70 percent of his campaign, according to OpenSecrets.org, so the bulk of his money isn’t coming from contributions. By contrast, donations make up 94 percent or more of the money for every other candidate still in the field.

Trump has received public support in one form or another from some people in sports, such as Paul O’Neill, Tom Brady, Dennis Rodman, Terrell Owens, John Rocker, Latrell Sprewell, Mike Tyson and Herschel Walker. NASCAR CEO Brian France endorsed Trump in late February. Very few donations in sports have gone to Ted Cruz, who is Trump’s top challenger for the Republican nomination, or Bernie Sanders, who is Clinton’s only challenger for the Democratic nomination.

The most recent available donations are from Dec. 31, 2015. Because of that cutoff date, it’s not clear whether Meyer attached a donation with his recent endorsement of Kasich. There are no records showing Meyer has ever donated to a political campaign.

Here is a sampling of where the money from sports has been going during this primary season:

The table below includes contributions made by individuals to campaigns and Super PACs made available via public financing records on OpenSecrets.org. It is a sampling of campaign contributions and not necessarily a comprehensive list.