Hey, NFL, don’t ignore the fans

By Brian Frederick

If NFL owners and players can’t resolve their differences on how to split up billions of dollars in annual revenue, the Super Bowl might be the last game we see for quite some time. Some games, even the entire 2011 season, may be lost. This would be disastrous for everyone — primarily, the fans.

NFL owners want the players to take a smaller percentage than they are currently taking because they’re worried about the long-term sustainability of the league. So they may “lock out” the players until they agree to take less. It’s hard to tell whether the owners have a valid claim because they don’t want to open up their financial books to the public.

This much we know: fans and taxpayers have already spent over $6.5 billion subsidizing NFL stadiums. (And that number could be as much as 40 percent higher, according to some experts.) The least the owners and players can do is play the games. Otherwise, our communities deserve some of that money back from the pockets of owners and players.

While the season may be almost over, there is still a lot of political football being played in Washington. Several players took to Capitol Hill last month, trying to use their celebrity to make their case. The owners accused the players of trying to get the government involved, but the owners themselves have spent $2.5 million in the last couple years lobbying Congress.

The fans may not have the money to lobby Congress, but they are not without a voice. The same day the players were on Capitol Hill, members of the Sports Fans Coalition met with White House staff to brief them on the lockout and our efforts to try to make sure the games are played. Last month, the fans launched SaveNextSeason.com, a national campaign featuring a petition demanding that the owners and players guarantee to us that there will be a 2011 season.

Rest assured, if enough fans demand there are games in the fall, we can make a difference.

Right now, both the NFL and the NFL Players Association are very concerned with appealing to the fans. The players have traveled from city to city, meeting with civic leaders and local fans, pleading that things are successful the way they are and a lockout would be devastating to local economies. The owners have so far taken the approach of saying that they’re concerned about “growing the game” for the fans and are only now becoming more active in making their case with the fans.

Fans need to demand a return on their investment. They have spent hundreds of billions of dollars — not to mention giving their own passion and loyalty — growing the NFL into being one of the premier sports leagues in the world. NFL owners and players are now at risk of fumbling that away.

Fans and taxpayers agreed to fund new stadiums and renovations with the implicit promise that there would be games and the games would benefit the community. To then take these games away from local communities and the fans because of a contract dispute would be utterly shameful.

The owners and players have just over a month to resolve their differences. If they can’t reach an agreement by March 4, when the current bargaining agreement expires, things could get very nasty and this could drag on for a very long time. It’s up to fans to unite now and change the debate so that the interests of fans are front and center.

The owners have their wealth. The players have their star power. But the fans have numbers. By unifying NFL fans into one giant collective voice, we can — and will — save next season.

Brian Frederick is executive director of the Sports Fans Coalition, a nonprofit based in Washington, D.C., that gives sports fans a voice on public policy issues.