Once he rejoined the Raiders organization, Davis ruthlessly attempted to gain power within the club. In 1972, while managing general partner Valley was attending the
1972 Summer Olympics in
Munich, Davis drafted a revised partnership agreement that made him the new managing general partner, with near-absolute control over team operations. McGah signed the agreement. Since two of the team's three general partners had voted in favor of the agreement, it was binding under partnership law of the time. Valley sued to overturn the agreement once he returned to the country, but was unsuccessful. Valley sold his interest in 1976, and no other partners have had any role in running the club since. This was despite the fact that Davis did not acquire a majority interest in the Raiders until 2005, when he bought the shares held by McGah's family. He now owns approximately 67 percent of the interests in the partnership through his company, A.D. Football, Inc.
In addition to serving as owner, Davis effectively serves as his own general manager. He has run the Raiders' football operations since his return in 1966—longer than any football operations chief in the league. He is one of three NFL owners who have the title or powers of general manager, others being the
Dallas Cowboys'
Jerry Jones and the
Cincinnati Bengals'
Mike Brown.
With Davis in control, the Raiders became one of the most successful teams in all of professional sports. From 1967 to 1985 the team won 13 division championships, one AFL championship (1967), three
Super Bowls (
XI,
XV, and
XVIII) and made 15 playoff appearances. Though the Raiders' fortunes have waned in recent years, having gone 24–72 from 2003 to 2008, they are one of two teams to play in the Super Bowl in four different decades, with the other being the Pittsburgh Steelers. Along with appearing in five Super Bowls, the Raiders have also played in their Conference/League Championship Game in every decade since their inception.
In 1992 Davis was inducted into the
Pro Football Hall of Fame as a Team and League Administrator, and was presented by
John Madden. Davis has been chosen by a record nine Pro Football Hall of Fame inductees to present them at the Canton, Ohio ceremony:
Lance Alworth,
Jim Otto,
George Blanda,
Willie Brown,
Gene Upshaw,
Fred Biletnikoff,
Art Shell,
Ted Hendricks, and Madden
