by Scott Weiss

With less than two months remaining before the March 4, 2011 expiration of the present NFL labor agreement, we are no closer to a resolution than we were a couple of months ago. The owners and players have only focused on trying to gain public support through petty public relations efforts. Roger Goodell, the mouthpiece for the owners has done nothing to help bring about labor peace. It is hard to believe that a league generating $8 billion in revenue is this close to a devastating work stoppage.

Rather than progress toward wrapping up a new collective bargaining agreement, here are the things that we have been treated to by the NFL and NFLPA over the past couple of months:

• The Commissioner saying, “I know we can and will reach an agreement,” without any details attached
• The NFLPA filing a complaint against the league regarding the present TV contract
• Word that the league will still get $4 billion dollars from the TV networks even if there is a work stoppage
• In response to a question about whether a work stoppage would be devastating for the league, Jerry Jones said, “No. I do not. But I know that the sentiment is not to have a lockout”
• The NFLPA voting to decertify their union in case of a lockout, both sides building war chests of hundreds of millions of dollars in case of a work stoppage
• The NFL announcing a ticket refund policy in case of a work stoppage
• And a former NFL player calling for a pre-emptive players strike during this year’s playoffs ahead of an owner’s lockout.

As sad and irrational as all of the above is, it is not surprising. History tells us that this is how owners and players in professional sports negotiate with each other when trying to reach a new labor agreement. All the while, loyal sports fans are dragged through the mud to either get a last second settlement or devastating work stoppage.

This is exactly why an organization like Sports Fans Coalition needs to become the powerful representative and voice of sports fans. Left to their own devices, owners and players will always screw things up. Let’s hope that with the help of Sports Fans Coalition that the status quo will finally be changed.

Scott Weiss is the Local Chapter Chair for SFC-New York/New Jersey and an SFC Sportwriter Fellow. He has been involved in the sports fans advocacy movement since 2000. He is a life long fan of the Mets, Jets, Knicks, and Rangers.

According to USA Today columnist Jon Saracena, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell is frustrated. With only 10 weeks left, Goodell states that the Collective Bargaining Agreement is foremost on his mind, at the top of the agenda to accomplish in the next couple of months. Toronto Sun columnist Bill Lanhof writes that he’s heard it all before.

One of the nation’s largest unions entered the NFL-NFLPA battle to stick up for the players union and — in a move support by Sports Fans Coalition — urged owners to open up their books.

From the SI.com article:

NFL players have a new teammate in their labor fight – the AFL-CIO.

One of the nation’s largest unions said Monday it had sent all of the league’s owners a letter warning that a lockout in one of America’s “few thriving” industries could cost thousands of Americans their jobs and cities more than $140 million in revenue.

It also urged owners to release financial statements, something NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith has sought for more than a year. The AFL-CIO called the owners’ refusal to provide financial documents “troubling.”

Read the full article here.

Check out the new webpage that the NFL has created to inform the media and public on how the labor talks are going.  (I’ll give you a hint: not good.)

With all of Goodell’s pleading in the days leading up to the Super Bowl in Miami, it was apparent, the league was feeling the heat.

The Sports Fans Coalition will continue to beat the drum, asking ‘What about the sports fans?’ We do not want to see a lockout in 2012.  They need to get a deal done.

So, whether you feel that the information on this site is helpful, biased, or just plain boring, it still might be a good resource for those studying how an organization seeks to totally abuse its position in this country as the number one sport by raking its fans over the coals time and time again shaking every last dime out of our pockets before they come back for more next season.

We shall see if the uncapped year of 2010 will be any different. At this point, it appears that there will be no change. The most important element in all this is that they get a deal done.

An SFC member sent the following article with the following comment today:

“Please read the following article and see how the discussion never includes the fans or the impact of their decisions on the fans.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/01/29/AR2010012902860.html

Mark Maske’s piece is well written and informative, but this SFC member is right.  What about the sports fan?

Labor disputes between the NFL and the NFLPA are no secret.  On Wednesday the Players Association will draw a line in the sand as DeMaurice Smith makes statements representing the players in a press conference.  Not to be outdone, Roger Goodell will take the podium on Thursday announcing the NFL’s stance.

While the PA has vowed it would be willing to sequester itself into a hotel with owners until a deal is done, the Billionaires Club will have no part in the survivor-style reality show option that Donald Trump is licking his chops to produce. Talk about Must-See TV!

Instead, all we have to cherish is this ‘rather than having a week off before the Super Bowl’ Pro Bowl game featuring all the NFL stars who weren’t good enough to be playing next Sunday.

All the gripes about today’s fan experience are moot juxtaposed with the signs of pending doom which clearly point to no football on Sundays, and it is a shame that sports fans get no say considering that they possess such a huge stake in the game.

That’s why the Sports Fans Coalition was created: to stand up for fans. Stand up with us.

Join the Coalition, voice your frustration, and pass it on!