Atlanta Falcons Owner Donates $1 Million to The Trevor Project

The category is giving coins for the community!

Arthur Blank, owner of the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons and soccer club Atlanta United, has reportedly donated seven figures to The Trevor Project.

Through his Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation, Blank donated a very generous sum of $1 million dollars, to the nonprofit centered on offering suicide prevention and mental health support for LGBTQ+ young people.

As of now, The Trevor Project has not officially responded to the donation, though it has already received praise from several public figures and fans alike.

Former NFL defensive end Carl Nassib, who became the first NFL player to publicly come out as gay while playing for an NFL team, praised the donation via his LinkedIn page, writing. “I am incredibly grateful to the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation for their extraordinary $1million donation to The Trevor Project and everyone at the Atlanta Falcons for their heartfelt support,” he said.

Nasir continued saying, “This donation helps fund counsellor training, enhance volunteer services, and ensure our critical programs reach LGBTQ+ youth in their most vulnerable moments. Thank you again to the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation. This gift will save lives,” Nassib concluded.

Laurette M., The Trevor Project’s Director of Individual Philanthropy, also shared a message of appreciation, thanking the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation, writing: “It’s always powerful to see an organisation invest not only in the communities around it, but also in the culture it builds internally. Creating space for learning, reflection, and connection like this matters more than people often realise.”

Who is Arthur M. Blank?

If you’re not familiar with Blank, just know he has enough money to last his lifetime—and his family’s for generations. According to Forbes, Blank’s net worth is just shy of $11 billion dollars.

Blank’s billions come from multiple ventures, including co-founding the home improvement retail chain The Home Depot and his involvement in sports investing.

In 2002, Blank bought the Atlanta Falcons for close to $545 million and has since overseen major changes to the NFL organization. That’s when he started running the franchise, including its move to Mercedes-Benz Stadium in 2017.

In addition to entering the football world, Blank also owns Major League Soccer’s Atlanta United FC.

Blank’s foundation has shown strong support for major causes, donating over $1.5 billion to programs focused on mental health and well-being, education, community rebuilding, and environmental initiatives.

Its most recent reported donation to The Trevor Project comes amid federal funding cuts to specialized LGBTQ+ suicide prevention services, leaving the organization as one of the primary support lines for LGBTQ+ youth.

In addition to providing a significant financial boost to The Trevor Project, Blank who owns a major NFL franchise, donating to an LGBTQ+ organization could also help encourage greater support from other NFL organizations and strengthen connections with the LGBTQ+ community.

The NFL’s relationship with the LGBTQ+ community

Over the last decade, the NFL has made great strides in publicly supporting the LGBTQ+ community.

Since 2020, the NFL has partnered with The Trevor Project, helping facilitate training sessions for NFL staff on LGBTQ+ awareness and support, joint inclusion and mental health programming, and annual donations of around $100,000 through the NFL Foundation.

In 2021, the first official NFL Pride Night was held in Washington, D.C. at FedExField, where the Washington Commanders (then the Washington Football Team) play home turf.

The move made sense, as the team has produced more former players who have come out as gay than any other NFL franchise. This includes David Kopay, the first former NFL player to publicly come out, along with Jerry Smith, Ray McDonald, and Roy Simmons.

In May 2024, the NFL condemned Kansas City Chiefs placekicker Harrison Butker’s anti-LGBTQ remarks made during a commencement speech at private Catholic institution Benedictine College.

In a written statement to PEOPLE, Jonathan Beane, the NFL’s senior vice president and chief diversity and inclusion officer, said, “Harrison Butker gave a speech in his personal capacity. His views are not those of the NFL as an organization. The NFL is steadfast in our commitment to inclusion, which only makes our league stronger.”

Blank’s donation raises a larger question: will more of his peers and the broader NFL community step up more consistently in support of the LGBTQ+ community?

In a time when DEI has been vilified by our President and funding for LGBTQ+ organizations is shrinking, I hope Blank’s donation signals that more support is on the way.