The NFL Players Association plans to utilize revenues generated via Players Inc., the marketing arm of the union, as part of the fund that will provide financial resources to players in the event of a work stoppage.
But now the NFLPA fears that the league will attempt to pilfer those resources by persuading players to assign rights to group marketing efforts before the players sign the union’s Group Licensing Agreement.
“This may seriously harm the union and its ability to resist efforts by the owners to roll back the gains we have achieved in the last collective bargaining negotiations, by jeopardizing our Group Licensing Program since the company obtaining the player’s name/image rights may attempt to use those rights in conjunction with 5 or more other players, thus undermining the exclusivity of our Group Licensing Program as to the same licensed product,” the union explains in a memo to all NFLPA-registered agents.
The Group Licensing Program applies in situations where the images and/or names of five or more players are used.
The notion that the league would intercept these rights before the Group Licensing Agreement is signed in order to hurt the union’s bargaining position seems unduly paranoid, and even if there’s no merit to the concern the mere fact that the concern exists speaks to a level of mistrust that could undermine efforts to work out a new labor deal.
As a result, the NFLPA is essentially ordering agents to guard their clients against those who might attempt to persuade the clients to sign marketing deals before signing the GLA. Specifically, the memo states that “every Contract Advisor is required to: (a) not recommend, encourage, facilitate, enable, or support their rookie clients to sign any such marketing agreement before entering into a GLA; (b) recommend and encourage their rookie clients to first enter into a GLA before signing any such marketing agreement; and (c) immediately advise the NFLPA in writing if any rookie client is contacted, either directly or indirectly, by anyone (including, without limitation, the NFL) seeking to have the rookie client enter into such a marketing agreement before signing a GLA.”
Frankly, something about this approach seems heavy handed at best, inappropriate at worst. And we wonder whether this effort by the union to guard its GLA revenues will serve only to motivate and inspire those who might be inclined to try to make a run at the rights.
And because the players will be required to forfeit all of their Group Licensing Program revenues to the lockout fund, some players might be inclined to sign elsewhere and claim ignorance.
The death of the NFL and the rise of the UFL.