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The Biz of Football Releases Copy of NFL Constitution and Bylaws PDF Print E-mail
NFL News - NFL Labor News
Written by Maury Brown   
Sunday, 16 October 2011 16:53
NFL Constitution and Bylaws
Click to go to document location

The Biz of Football has been updated with a new document….

When it comes to understanding how ownership in sports leagues is guided, each one’s constitution is the template.

For the public, access to such docs are hard to find. Today, the Business of Sports Network is happy to make one available to you.

The site has been updated with a copy of the NFL Constitution and Bylaws. This 292 page document is interesting for the fact that unlike other leagues, the NFL simply updates its Constitution with amendments within – it is a living document from year to year.

A handful of interesting notes....

On page 2, under Article II (Purpose and Objectives), article 2.2 reads, “The League is not organized nor to be operated for profit.” As a note, gross revenues for the NFL in the last full season were $9.3 billion. By Forbes accounting, operating income – a measure of profit – the Dallas Cowboys pulled in $1.19 billion in profits pre-EBITA.

On page 10, under Membership Covenants and Obligations (3.11A), “They, and each of them, shall be bound by and will observe all decisions of the Commissioner of the League in all matters within his jurisdiction.

On page 12, under Rights within Territory (4.1, B), “The ‘home territory’ of the Green Bay Packers shall extend to and include all of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin despite the fact that portions of County are outside the 75 mile limits from the exterior corporate limits of the City of Green Bay.”

On page 67, under Player Contracts (15.1), “All contracts between clubs and players shall be executed in triplicate and be in the form adopted by the member clubs of the League; such contract shall be known as the ‘NFL Player Contract.’ Subject to the provision of Section 9 (C) (8) hereof, a club may delete portions of or otherwise amend the NFL Player Contract subject to the rights of the Commissioner to disapprove the same, as provided by Section 15.4 hereof.”

See the NFL Constitution and Bylaws

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Maury BrownMaury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey, and is a contributor to Forbes SportsMoney blog.. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network (select his name in the dropdown provided).

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Last Updated on Sunday, 16 October 2011 17:02
 
NFLPA Memo Highlights "Soft Cap" Exception as Part of Brady v NFL Settlement PDF Print E-mail
NFL News - NFL Labor News
Written by Maury Brown   
Wednesday, 27 July 2011 19:00

While full details of the settlement of the Brady v NFL anti-trust case has yet to surface, some aspects are slowly filtering out. One is through a memo that went to all player agents today and details how there is “soft cap” flexibility in the cap system as part of the settlement between the league and the players.

The salary cap for 2011 has been set at $120.4 million per club but the memo mentions “under the terms of the Brady settlement the rules relating to salary cap accounting continue to allow for a club to exceed the $120.4 million salary cap in actual cash spent, just as clubs have been able to do since a cap system was first established in 1993.”

In addition, the memo goes on to mention that for 2011 there is “a $3.0 million salary cap exemption available per club at their discretion, which if used fully by a club would effectively raise their salary cap another $3.0 million to $123.4 million. The way this works is that a club may exempt from the salary cap the salaries (up to $1.0 million per player) of three players on the team who have more than five Accrued Seasons in the NFL. If a club chooses to exempt these salaries they will therefore have $ 3.0 million in additional cap room to sign other players.”

These “soft cap” changes, according to the memo allow clubs to “also continue to use the methods that they have previously to exceed the salary cap in cash spent. The most common such technique of course is through signing bonus payments as opposed to salary. A club can pay a player a cash signing bonus and only the prorated amount of that bonus will count against that club's salary cap in that League Year. For example, in 2011 a club can sign a player to a 4-year contract with a $4.0 million signing bonus. The player will be paid $4.0 million in cash on signing but the club will only have to count $1.0 million of that signing bonus against their salary cap for 2011.”

As the memo ends, the NFLPA said, “These rules therefore give NFL clubs the ability to sign the players they want even though they may only have a limited amount of salary cap room left.“

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Maury BrownMaury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey, and is a contributor to Forbes SportsMoney blog.. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network (select his name in the dropdown provided).

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Sources: Roger Goodell and DeMaurice Smith Repaid Salary Lost During Lockout PDF Print E-mail
NFL News - NFL Labor News
Written by Maury Brown   
Wednesday, 27 July 2011 13:36


With the NFL lockout coming to a close on Monday, sources close to both the NFL and NFLPA indicate that Commissioner Roger Goodell and Exec. Director DeMaurice Smith will be receive pay retroactively that they voluntarily refused during the work stoppage.

Goodell cut his salary to $1 just two days after the lockout started with Smith going a bit further five days later saying he would take no pay what so ever.

Goodell reportedly has a salary of $10 million annually with bonuses while Smith’s salary is $1.8 million. With those figures and a lockout that lasted 136 days, Goodell will receive approx. $3.7 million in back pay while Smith will get approx. $670,000. As for bonuses, one would not be surprised if both men did receive them, although sources did not indicate that to be the case at this time.

The back pay to the two executives come as NFL clubs began to repay employees that had pay cut during the work stoppage, as well. According to sources close to the NFLPA, no staff members, other than Smith voluntarily, had salary cuts during the lockout.

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Maury BrownMaury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey, and is a contributor to Forbes SportsMoney blog.. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network (select his name in the dropdown provided).

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Last Updated on Wednesday, 27 July 2011 13:50
 
Winners and Losers in the NFL Now that Lockout Over PDF Print E-mail
NFL News - NFL Labor News
Written by Jordan Kobritz   
Tuesday, 26 July 2011 13:42

Back to FootballNFL football is coming to a TV screen near you.  Four and one-half months after locking out the players, team owners unanimously (Oakland abstained) voted to approve a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) which the players agreed to ratify.

In an effort to put the onus on the players to end the labor impasse the league initiated, management essentially told the players, “This is our last and best offer.  Take it or leave it.”  Of course, the players’ decision was easy.  A no vote would have meant a loss of paychecks.

Now that the stalemate is over, who are the winners and losers?  While no one except the direct negotiators knows all the details in the fine print of the agreement, it’s safe to say all the parties to the agreement are winners.  Start with the owners.  They went into the negotiations seeking a number of key concessions, including an 18-game regular season schedule, a billion dollar “give-back” by the players, a lower percentage of league revenue to the players, and a cap on rookie bonuses and salaries.  They went two for four.

First year players will receive four-year contracts with owners holding an option for a fifth year on first round draft picks.  Total spending on draft picks will be capped, assuring that a rookie will no longer be the highest paid player at his position before playing a single down in the league.  That concession really didn’t affect the NFLPA which doesn’t represent rookies until they sign their first contract.  In addition, a portion of what teams will save on rookie compensation will be allocated to player benefits, such as health care and post-injury salary guarantees.  The 18-game schedule – a particular bone of contention with the players - was shelved for at least three years and cannot be implemented without player approval.

Although the players agreed to take a lower percentage of the revenue pie – down from 53% to 47 % - teams will have a higher salary floor and owners guaranteed the players the league will increase revenue, from $9.3 billion last year to an estimated $20 billion by the end of the ten-year agreement.  Players will also be subject to fewer in-season and out-of-season workouts, which should result in fewer injuries and less wear and tear on their bodies.

One major concession to the owners is the lack of federal court oversight of the new CBA, a provision that was included in the prior agreement. Henceforth, disputes between the parties will be resolved by arbitration, similar to Major League Baseball.  The issue was of great concern to the owners as they are currently winless in Federal District Court under the watchful eye of Judge David Doty.

Another winner was NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.  This was Goodell’s first foray into CBA negotiations, and although his inexperience showed at times, he was able to maintain owner unity throughout the process and came away with an agreement that met the needs of both small and large market teams.

The biggest winner of all may be NFLPA head DeMaurice Smith, an experienced trial attorney but like Goodell, a rookie in labor negotiations.  There were predictions that the owners would fleece Smith - and the players - as they had done throughout the union’s existence.  But this time was different.  Smith proved to be up to the task of protecting his constituents and came away with an agreement that on the surface appears to be fair, balanced, and guarantees labor peace for the next decade.

And how can we forget the lawyers, who pocketed tens-of-millions of dollars during the dispute and related litigation.

The losers are obvious – the “little guys.”  The lockout resulted in cancellation of the annual Hall of Fame game.  Anyone who relies on revenue from that game could rightfully feel victimized.  In addition, given the timing of the agreement, a number of teams opted to conduct training camp at their own practice facility rather than at remote sites.  Those facilities and communities are also casualties of the lockout and will suffer a loss of revenue and publicity.

Although neither side came away with all it wanted, this agreement makes sense in both the short and long term.  In the end, everyone – billionaire owners and millionaire players - will be richer than they were before the lockout began.

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Jordan Kobritz is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network. He can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network. He is a former attorney, CPA, and Minor League Baseball team owner. He is an Assistant Professor of Sport Management at Eastern New Mexico University and teaches the Business of Sports at the University of Wyoming.

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Sections of the New 2011 NFL CBA Regarding Players Contracts (PDFs) PDF Print E-mail
NFL News - NFL Labor News
Written by Maury Brown   
Monday, 25 July 2011 19:48

Article 4

The following are sections of the 2011 NFL CBA that were released to player agents in advance of signings. The briefing took place on the day that the new CBA was ratified (July 25, 2011), but before the NFLPA was recertified as a union.

The following are PDFs of:

  • Article 4: NFL Player Contract
  • Article 7: Rookies Compensation and Rookie Compensation Pool
  • Article 11: Transaction Rules for the 2011 League Year

SELECT READ MORE TO SEE THE DOCUMENTS

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NFLPA Board of Directors Recommend Settlement of Brady v NFL, Details Not Released PDF Print E-mail
NFL News - NFL Labor News
Written by Maury Brown   
Monday, 25 July 2011 19:09

NFLPA

THIS IS BREAKING NEWS....

The NFLPA Board of Directors has voted to recommend a settlement to the plaintiffs in Brady, et al v. NFL, the anti-trust lawsuit that was working the lift the lockout. The true details of how that settlement will be addressed, however, were not released by the NFLPA. In a statement, the soon-to-be-again union for the players said:

Player Directors active in the process confirmed they believe the terms presented today will improve conditions for NFL players past, present and future.

“This has been a long road for everyone involved. While it is not yet over, the diligence demonstrated by active and former players speaks volumes to their dedication to reaching a fair deal,” said Kevin Mawae, NFLPA President. “This settlement is an essential component to what will be a long-term agreement benefitting players, owners and fans.”

The NFLPA Executive Committee reviewed settlement terms earlier today before unanimously voting to pass it to the Board of Directors for their endorsement.

“Several of us have been involved in every step of these negotiations for more than two years,” said Domonique Foxworth, member of the NFLPA Executive Committee. “We are confident that the result made possible by the compromises made by both sides is good for the future of our game.”

The Board of Directors will make a formal recommendation to the 10 named plaintiffs that they accept the terms of the settlement. The plaintiffs decide the next course of action.

“We have all worked tirelessly throughout this process,” said Jeff Saturday, member of the NFLPA Executive Committee. “We now look forward to a conclusion so we can return to playing the game we all love."

MORE DETAILS AS THEY BECOME AVAILABLE

Maury Brown will be making radio appearances across the country throughout the day. Check @BizballRadio on Twitter for details

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Maury BrownMaury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey, and is a contributor to Forbes SportsMoney blog.. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network (select his name in the dropdown provided).

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Last Updated on Monday, 25 July 2011 19:14
 
Complete Text: Brief of New NFL CBA to Player Agents PDF Print E-mail
NFL News - NFL Labor News
Written by Maury Brown   
Monday, 25 July 2011 18:51

NFLPA

The following is text of a Powerpoint presentation that was just given to all NFL Player Agents, and is a brief regarding aspects of the new 10-year CBA that was unanimously approved by the NFL players:

2011 Deal Summary of Main Terms
(7/25/11)

Players’ Share of Revenues
•“All Revenues” (AR) included in cap  calculation with limited deductions as  opposed to TR with significant deductions
•1.5% Stadium Credit to encourage new  stadiums and renovations resulting in  significant increases in new revenues being included in AR

Players’ Percentage of AR
• Players’ share of Revenue calculated  as follows:
•55% of League Media (TV, Radio,  etc.)
•45% of NFL Ventures/Post-Season
•40% of local Club revenues
• Upper Band of 48% (2012-14) & 48.5% (2015-20)
• Lower Band of 47%

Players’ Percentage of AR
• After applying the 1.5% Stadium Credit,  Lower Band cannot be below  47%(2012-14),46.5% (2015-16), 46% (2017-20)
•Guarantee of Cap amount being an  average of 47% over the life of the Agreement
•True up to actual revenues each year

Minimum Cash Spend Requirements
•Guaranteed League-Wide Cash Spend of 99% of the Salary Cap in 2011-12
•Guaranteed League-Wide Cash Spend of 95% of salary cap in 2013-16 and 2017-20 four year periods
•Minimum Team Cash Spend - 89% of salary cap in 2013-16 and 2017-20 on a four-year average

2011 Cap - Transition
•Salary Cap set at $120.375M with $22.025M in benefits for 2011
•$3M in additional cap room per Club in 2011(at club option) by taking up to $1M off the cap charge for up to three players per Club with 5 or more Accrued Seasons (same rule for 2012, but for a total of $1.5M in extra room created from three players with a $500k  in salary)
•No Performance Based Pay in 2011, with  money instead devoted to cap room
•90 player roster for 2011 preseason  training camp
Select READ MORE to see the rest of the CBA details presented to player agents

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Last Updated on Monday, 25 July 2011 19:03
 
NFL, NFLPA Reach Final Agreement to End Lockout Early Monday Morning PDF Print E-mail
NFL News - NFL Labor News
Written by Maury Brown   
Monday, 25 July 2011 09:07


UPDATE (9:50am ET): Added details, as well as correction to the coming week’s timeline that was slightly off by Glazer early this AM.

THIS IS BREAKING NEWS…

Early Monday morning, the sides in the NFL labor battle finally reached full agreement to end the lockout, with an press conference scheduled later this afternoon to announce the deal expected to be 10-years in length. The news of the early morning deal was first reported by Jay Glazer of FOX Sports.

Some small contract language details still need to be added, but shortly after the NFLPA Exec Committee will review from 11am to noon ET and vote immediately thereafter.  From there, a full vote by the Player Representatives and the entire player body will take place. But, sources close to the deal on both sides of the table believe that approval will come after the Exec. Committee recommends the deal.

Changes to the new agreement have taken place to terms since owner vote last week on terms for their final proposal (see those details). As for any changes since then, the NFL’s Labor Committee had been delegated the authority to close the deal.

The new timeline for teams reporting will be 10 teams on Wed, 10 on Thurs, 10 Fri, and 2 (Jets and Texans) on Sunday.

The agreement is a bit of a leap of faith by the owners. The lockout will be lifted before the NFLPA is recertified. To do so requires 50 percent, plus 1 vote by the players to do so. The expectation is that it will happen Tues, with Weds. at the latest.

Two key issues have not yet surfaced. One is whether the players got language in the CBA that will allow them to opt out of the agreement at some point, possibly within 6 years of the 10 year deal. The owners had a similar provision in the last CBA, and exercised that option in 2008.

The other issue that looms is how the global settlement for the two outstanding litigations will be handled. One is the class-action antitrust lawsuit that has Tom Brady, Drew Brees, and Peyton Manning as the star lead plaintiffs.

The lockout, the longest in NFL history, began on March 11 and is now 135 days long.

Maury Brown will be making radio appearances across the country throughout the day. Check @BizballRadio on Twitter for details

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Maury BrownMaury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey, and is a contributor to Forbes SportsMoney blog.. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network (select his name in the dropdown provided).

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Last Updated on Monday, 25 July 2011 13:49
 
Final Pieces Addressed as NFL Player Committee to Meet Monday to Recommend Vote PDF Print E-mail
NFL News - NFL Labor News
Written by Maury Brown   
Saturday, 23 July 2011 21:15

NFLPA

While the NFL’s owners voted on Thursday to approve a proposal to end the lockout, it was a one-sided affair. With several pieces still needing to be addressed, the players have yet to ratify any agreement that would end the longest work stoppage in league history.

(See While NFL Owners Ratify Proposal, Here’s the Final Steps Needed to Get a CBA in Place)

Now, Chris Mortensen and John Clayton of ESPN are reporting via Twitter that major progress was made today on the players’ side and that the Players committee meet Monday in DC to hopefully recommend approval. According to Albert Breer, the meeting took place via conference call this afternoon.

If so, that would allow matters such as the recertification vote to take place, a key element. As I reported for Forbes on Friday, the vote would take place via signature at training camps. Under the terms, some players would report on Weds while others on Friday. According to Mortensen and Clayton, the hope by sources on the players side is that enough votes would be in place by Weds to get the deal finalized by Friday. To approve the recert, a 50-percent-plus-one-vote majority must occur.

What is outstanding is how the Brady v NFL and “insurance lockout” cases will be settled. Both are vastly important.

In other related news…

Mark Maske of the Washington Post reports via Twitter that “it's not clear if the league would agree to the seven-year opt-out the players seem to want, but it might not be deal-breaker for players.”

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Maury BrownMaury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey, and is a contributor to Forbes SportsMoney blog.. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network (select his name in the dropdown provided).

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In Bizarre Twist, NFLPA Warns Players, Agents of Fake Website for Votes PDF Print E-mail
NFL News - NFL Labor News
Written by Maury Brown   
Friday, 22 July 2011 18:40

In a bizarre twist to the NFL labor situation, it appears that NFL players and agents are involved in some kind of phishing scheme, or at least that’s a possibility.

As the players have yet to vote on re-establishing themselves as a union to finalize certain aspects of the upcoming CBA, a rogue website has begun soliciting the players. An email sent to players and agents from Tom DePaso, the NFLPA’s Associate General Counsel, sent a warning:

We have received information from players indicating that they are being referred to a website – nflvr.com.  The website is asking players to vote to reconstitute as a union and that the players can use the site to facilitate that action.  Please be advised that this site is not affiliated with either the NFL or the NFLPA.  You should ignore this site and advise your players to do so as well.

On the vote… the owners believe that the union can be reconstituted quickly via electronic vote while the NFLPA has said that, just as they did with the vote to decertify, the vote should be paper with signatures.

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Maury BrownMaury Brown is the Founder and President of the Business of Sports Network, which includes The Biz of Baseball, The Biz of Football, The Biz of Basketball and The Biz of Hockey, and is a contributor to Forbes SportsMoney blog.. He is available as a freelance writer. Brown's full bio is here. He looks forward to your comments via email and can be contacted through the Business of Sports Network (select his name in the dropdown provided).

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Last Updated on Friday, 22 July 2011 20:14
 
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