NFL hires Dhar Mann as Chief Kindness Officer for Super Bowl 2026 — and he has shady criminal past
He wasn’t always this kind.
The NFL has named mega-popular creator Dhar Mann as the league’s “Chief Kindness Officer,” as well as “Creator of the Week” leading up to Super Bowl 2026.
Mann — who’s known for his scripted wholesome and kind-hearted content that’s garnered billions of views — has 26 million YouTube subscribers, 16 million TikTok followers and 4 million Instagram followers. It his online success comes after he dealt with legal issues over a decade ago, stemming from felony fraud charges.
The news, which was first reported by The Hollywood Reporter, comes after Fox Entertainment announced a multi-year deal with Dhar Mann Studios, one of the largest creator-led studios in Los Angeles and founded by Mann, for a series of original scripted vertical-video shows Monday.
Mann posted a promotional TikTok for his new role with the NFL, spoofing Super Bowl moments and turning them into acts of kindness.
“Instead of a halftime show, we’re gonna do a hug time show,” Mann says in the video after receiving his “Chief Kindness Officer” badge at the NFL headquarters.
“How about instead of throwing these [penalty] flags, we just present them nicely.”
The 41-year-old entrepreneur annually earns ten figures from Google AdSense, and his studio has extensive brand partnerships, including Meta and Universal, according to Forbes.
In 2025, Mann was ranked the No. 2 top creator by Forbes and made the Time 100 top creators list.
Dhar Mann at YouTube BrandCast 2025 held at David Geffen Hall, Lincoln Center on May 14, 2025 in New York. Variety via Getty Images
In 2011, Mann pled “no contest” to five felony counts of defrauding the city of Oakland, which accused him of fraudulently pocketing more than $44,000 he’d received from city redevelopment grants, according to The New York Times.
Prosecutors reportedly reduced the charges from 13 to five felony counts. He was fined $37,500 and faced no jail time.
Mann told The New York Times in 2021 that the conviction was later expunged.
Dhar Mann and his wife Laura Avila attend the Nominees Night: An Official Golden Week Event Hosted by The Hollywood Reporter and Spotify at The Lot at Formosa on Jan. 8, 2026. Getty Images
Mann’s first initiative at Super Bowl 2026 will be a “Be Kind to Your Rival” social campaign, encouraging fans to say nice things about opposing teams and fanbases.
For every qualifying post using #KindnessWinsBig, Mann will donate $1 to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital (up to $100,000), a charitable partner of the NFL since 2012.
The Lombardi Trophy. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
The NFL is putting an emphasis on creators at the big game — between the Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots in Santa Clara, Calif. — with more than 160 creators across various social platforms set to film content during Super Bowl Week.
Mann is open about his past hard times and hitting “rock bottom” at the age of 30 — broke, two weeks from eviction, and depressed over a “difficult breakup.”
He eventually turned his life around with the help of meditation and prayer, and began posting motivational videos in 2018.
“When I created my first video, it was of me talking in front of a camera for five minutes offering my ‘followers’ (a.k.a., my few hundred friends on Facebook) motivational advice,” Mann told Business Insider in a 2020 interview. “It took me over 100 takes to record that video, and it ultimately did nothing.
“… Over time, I realized that not only was I not that good at telling motivational stories in front of camera, but also I didn’t enjoy it. Instead of giving up, I found a new strategy that worked for me: I decided to use family and friends as ‘actors’ in my videos to tell the stories I wanted to share, and I would just come in at the end to summarize the lesson to be learned.
“When I adjusted my style of content to this new format, 168 videos later, my total views exploded to over four billion.
Mann and his wife Laura Avila — who is an influencer, actress and fashion designer — have two daughters together.
“After having gone through so many hard times, I made it my purpose to help others that might be similarly struggling like how I was,” Mann says on his website.
“That’s why I started making videos. And that’s how I’m able to create such relatable content that feels like it hits home. Because I’ve been there. I’ve experienced the hard times. And I use that as inspiration to help you overcome yours too.”
