NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue tried to send a message Tuesday. Not just to Dallas owner Jerry Jones, whom the league is suing over his independent marketing deals. But to fans, and why they should agree with him in this in-house fight.
“If you don’t see the big picture here, you don’t know what’s going on in sports in America today,” said Tagliabue, his voice on the verge of breaking as he discussed the league’s 75-year history of revenue sharing. “Read about pressure of teams to move to big markets. Read about problems of labor peace. That’s what this is about. It’s not about soda pop and cola and shoes and logos and do-rags and that stuff. It’s about serving fans in a high-class way with stability.”
At a meeting here, Tagliabue passionately defended the stable structure of his sport against “intolerable, unacceptable conduct” by Jones, who insisted his ambush marketing is a better way.
Jones was served a $300 million lawsuit by NFL Properties, the league’s licensing arm, and spent 90 minutes trying to convince fellow owners at a meeting here that his recent Texas Stadium sponsorship contracts with Pepsi and Nike are not only legal but a concept that potentially can benefit “the best interest of the league.”
A hearing on Thursday in federal court in New York will attempt to preclude Jones from filing a countersuit.
Jones said he was “very, very optimistic” the lawsuit could be settled. Jones would not confirm whether he is planning to announce another deal with American Express credit cards. The league has an agreement with Visa.
“My guess is if he does anything now, it will only make our case stronger,” said Minnesota Vikings president Roger Headrick, chairman of the NFL Properties executive committee.
Headrick said the lawsuit was filed to stop confusion among sponsors and retail licensees who wonder how many teams they have purchased through Properties and also to stop owners from following Jones’ lead.
Jones signed free agent cornerback and Nike client Deion Sanders from the San Francisco 49ers to a $35 million contract including a $13 million signing bonus shortly after announcing his Nike deal. If rival owners indeed determine Jones has found a new way of doing business, they might not be able to stop themselves from joining him.
“I guarantee you that’s right,” said New Orleans Saints owner Thomas Benson. “You don’t think San Francisco is going to sit there very long, do you? And I’ll tell you what. New Orleans is not going to sit there very long either.”
Jones said he was “not interested” in changing the basic concept of revenue sharing, but Headrick and others were skeptical and expressed concern about the “ripple effect” Jones’ contracts have on other structures.
“Why is this revenue-sharing agreement no good, but television revenue sharing is fine?” Headrick asked. “What if someone wants to opt out of the TV contract and take a risk on their own share? Then you’ve got chaos. You’ve got bedlam. You’ve got Major League Baseball.”
Cleveland Browns owner Art Modell said even if Jones could demand $40 million a year in Dallas for television rights (the amount each team currently shares), “he would only have about four teams to play because everybody else would be out of business.”
Headrick said the league has tried to get Jones to share his obvious expertise in marketing.
“It’s always been , `If you did this on your own, you’d be better off,’ rather than, `I can provide everybody another way to help the total picture,’ ” Headrick said.
Headrick said Properties has “overwhelming support” among owners for the lawsuit, but Jones said, “I feel I have a lot of friends in there. I regret that we didn’t have a chance to have a real open dialogue. I was disappointed it became litigious. If we get to decision time in the legal process, I would win.”
New England Patriots’ owner Robert Kraft, like Jones one of several owners who have paid in excess of $100 million for their franchises in recent years, said there are two sides.
“New owners are coming in with very high capital costs. We have to find a way of people to do sales and marketing,” said Kraft. “There are some owners here who are not going out and working their markets.”
Jones has the best of both sides. He already has paid off his debt and his Cowboys represent one-fourth of the revenue shared by NFL Properties. He thinks Cowboy popularity should be rewarded.
Coca-Cola is in the third year of a five-year $250 million deal as the NFL’s official soft drink. Jones’ deal with Pepsi pays from $25 million-$40 million (depending on whose figures are correct) for 10 years. For Pepsi, it’s cheaper than buying the whole league, but if there wasn’t a league deal, the Texas Stadium deal wouldn’t be worth so much.
