The chairman and CEO of Kansas City Chiefs Clark Hunt has released a statement praising the character of the former Detroit Lions owner William Clay Ford, who died on Sunday aged 88.

Hunt said that everyone at the Chiefs were sending Ford's family their best wishes, and admitted that the NFL would be worse off without him.

"On behalf of my family and the entire Chiefs organisation we'd like to express our deepest sympathies to the Ford family and the Detroit Lions," he told the club's official website.

"Mr Ford was a kind, passionate man that always had the game's best interests in mind. He loved his family and his team dearly and it showed in his work. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the Ford family and the Lions during this difficult time."

Ford was owner of the Lions since purchasing the club in 1963.