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Monday, 21 February 2011 11:30

Written by Bob Smizik

Representatives of the Sports Fans Coalition want a seat at the table during negotiations between the NFL and the players union. Good luck with that.

Sure, fans pay the bills. But the consumer pays the bills on everything and rarely, if ever, is given a seat at the negotiating table. Both sides prefer, as one member of the union negotiating team put it, a ``cone of silence.’’

By Gary Mihoces, USA Today

WASHINGTON — The NFL and its players union held federally mediated talks for the third consecutive day Sunday. And the head of a fan group again tried in vain to hand deliver a letter to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.

The letter asks that a representative of the group be allowed to monitor the talks.

"I guess I'll have to come back in the morning," said Brian Frederick, executive director of the Sports Fans Coalition, a Washington group formed in 2009.

Frederick said he presented a similar letter Friday to DeMaurice Smith, executive director of the NFL Players Association. Unsuccessful in presenting a copy to Goodell on Friday, he returned Sunday. After waiting for several hours outside the building, he again missed the commissioner's exit.

"We are not asking for a seat at the negotiating table — although we believe fans deserve one — but merely to be present in the room so that we may inform fans across the country about the state of ongoing negotiations and ensure that progress is being made, toward," said the letter.

Read the rest of the story.

Comments (12)

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written by PiratesFanSince1960, February 21, 2011 - 09:42 AM

Great idea in a perfect world!! Let a neutral fan decide.... Like a Steeler fan!!
cheers
Go Football. Don't make the mistake again of Baseball
David

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written by Hanover Bill, February 21, 2011 - 10:00 AM

Not going to happen. Surely no one thinks that the billionaires and the millionaires are going to let a representative of the peons be present at their negotiations. If that were to happen the fans may actually learn how much money we are talking about here.

One thing the afore mentioned group of wealthy people should keep in mind is that the fans will ultimately decide their long term fate. I'm sure it is years down the road, but eventually the fans will rule, when they finally get tired of watching this ridiculous charade play out every several years.

If the fans ever realize the power that they possess over professional sports the owners and the athletes will be in big trouble. Then and only then will this whole thing be brought under control, until that happens it's every billionaire and every millionaire for himself in this feeding frenzy of greed.

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written by t2pyah, February 21, 2011 - 10:08 AM

If the owners continue to insist on an 18 game schedule, I would not care if the NFL never played again ... ever ...

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written by AZburgher, February 21, 2011 - 10:16 AM

I wonder if Congress can mandate binding arbitration.
Since most of these owners get publicly funded stadiums and the taxpayer foots the bill on infrastructure as well, how can we afford to let those expensive facilities sit unused this fall and winter?
Probably a ridiculous question but one that should be asked.
Do the owners still pay rent if the games aren't played? Do employees at all of those great jobs created still get to work? I figure those vendors and others involved make less than Jerry Jones and won't want to miss a day.
Some will say,"Congress?", and to those I say that's the job of Congress and government.. To protect taxpayers interest even if it messes with the Billionaire Boys Club.
If anything, government could get some kind of PR boost with taxpayers and we don't miss out on football. The fact that a few misguided billionaires get it in the shorts is just frosting on the cake.
Go PITT!

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written by richie, February 21, 2011 - 10:33 AM

****************
Fans at the bargain table?

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written by dontknocktherock, February 21, 2011 - 10:39 AM

A truly dumb idea. Next whenever W.Va. coal miners strike those whose homes have electricty supplied by coal fired plants will want a seat at the table. Or if the UAW strikes, everybody who buys cars will want a direct link to negotiations.

Having someone sit in on negotiations and then report back as th what's going on will just complicate things. Many ideas are exchanged in these sessions, some which will never see the light of day in any form. All you'll do is further antagonize the public.

And having government intervention imposed in a labor dispute in a non-vital industry is another extremely bad idea. There are mechanisms to get federal arbitration, but to ask the government to step in is completely wrong.

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written by richie, February 21, 2011 - 10:47 AM

btw,
fans have all the power in the world to voice their opinion..... Dont go to the games or dont watch on TV if you dont like a pro sports league or team.

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written by BaseballFan, February 21, 2011 - 11:04 AM

"Sources say the Dallas Stars and Pittsburgh Penguins may be working on a deal involving two high quality players. It's believed the Pens are willing to move defenceman Alex Goligoski for the right forward, and a trade involving Stars winger James Neal has been discussed." - TSN

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written by gregenstein, February 21, 2011 - 12:13 PM

I'm sorry, but do not *deserve* a seat at the bargaining table. No other industry operates that way, and football shouldn't either. Season ticket holders have a choice as to whether or not to continue buying the season tickets. The NFL doesn't force you to pay thousands a year. If you don't like what's going on, don't pay.

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written by BaseballFan, February 21, 2011 - 03:08 PM

TSN reports that the above deal is official and also involves Matt Niskanen.

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written by Rocco, February 21, 2011 - 10:11 PM

I had never heard of this "coalition" before, so I googled them and went to their website. What a bunch of self-important buffoons.

As has already been stated, fans have the right to buy tickets or not, watch games on tv or not, listen to games on the radio or not. But to be involved in or monitor negotiations between a business and its employees? Seriously?

Their argument to much of this is that most sports teams, both professional and college, benefit from taxpayer subsidies, therefore taxpayers (and they've deemed themselves our representatives as taxpayers) should have a say in how the teams are run. The glaring flaw to this is that the government officials who grant these subsidies ARE ALREADY our representatives. I'm not for a minute going to try to defend the qualifications of many elected officials or the quality of the "work" that they perform on our behalf...cough, cough...but that's the system we have.

If you're not happy with the deals the government cuts with the teams, your beef is with your elected officials, not with the teams...and you certainly have no right, legal or moral, to be involved in private labor negotiations.

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written by D1J1, February 22, 2011 - 03:54 AM

If you're not happy with the deals the government cuts with the teams, your beef is with your elected officials, not with the teams...and you certainly have no right, legal or moral, to be involved in private labor negotiations.

Precisely. The fans have every right to make their voice heard in any and all matters concerning their teams, but only with their wallets and purses, period.

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