Lamar Jackson with the winners of the 2025 NTL Kickoff Race.
Courtesy: National Thoroughbred League
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson has a singular goal both on the football field and as owner of the Maryland Colts horse racing franchise in the National Thoroughbred League.
“I just want to win a championship,” Jackson told CNBC. “I want to win one in the National Football League. I want to win one in the NTL.”
Jackson purchased the Maryland Colts in 2024, basing the franchise in Baltimore where the Colt moniker was previously attached to a Super Bowl-winning National Football League team.
The Maryland Colts are part of the 10-franchise NTL, which operates a new team-based concept for horse racing. Teams earn points based on how their horses and jockeys finish in each competition, similar to auto racing. Those points are totaled at the end of the season to determine the winner of the NTL Championship.
Jackson is part of a growing trend of active and retired NFL quarterbacks looking for equity in sports teams.
Legendary quarterback Tom Brady is a minority owner in the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders, and former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning is a minority owner in the National Basketball Association’s Memphis Grizzlies.
Current Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes has a stake in the Kansas City Royals of Major League Baseball, Sporting Kansas City of Major League Soccer and the Miami Pickleball Club of Major League Pickleball. He also invested in Formula 1’s Alpine auto racing team.
Jackson said beyond the Colts, he has no immediate plans to take ownership in other sports teams. Instead, the two-time NFL Most Valuable Player is focused on creating an impact.
“When we are looking to invest, it has to be something meaningful. I have to see long-term goals when I’m doing something,” Jackson said. “That’s how I move when I’m in the investing space.”
In addition to bringing a horse racing team to the city, Jackson hopes to bring new opportunities to the young people of Baltimore.
Lamar Jackson signs a football for a young fan.
Courtesy: National Thoroughbred League
On Saturday, as the NTL kicked off its 2025 season at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Jackson hosted a community day where he invited young people to learn about horse racing and careers in the industry.
“The reason I got involved in the NTL is I saw the vision. Giving back to the underprivileged, this is a no-brainer for me,” he said. “There are a lot of underprivileged kids in Baltimore, and they look at the football players for hope and guidance.”
The Colts placed third in the opening race weekend.
Jackson played college football at the University of Louisville, about a mile away from famed race track Churchill Downs, home of the Kentucky Derby. But Lamar said he never attended the race while in college.
Still, his love for horses started much younger, as he grew up in Florida.
“I was always intrigued with horses,” Jackson said, “I’m from Cypress, a small town in Pompano Beach. There was always this horse track and horse racing going on in our area.”
The NTL is just one of many efforts to modernize horse racing. All three tracks that host the Triple Crown of horse racing have planned projects to modernize and attract new fans.
Churchill Downs announced a nearly $1 billion renovation plan in February before suspending those plans due to tariffs. Pimlico, which hosts the Preakness, will begin a $400 million renovation after the race on Saturday. Belmont Park in the suburbs of New York City is in the process of a more than $455 million renovation.
