Ebersol Denies AAF Needed Dundon Investment To Stay Afloat

It is still unclear what Dundon's investment means for Ebersol and Polian's roles with the AAF Photo: AAF It is still unclear what Dundon's investment means for Ebersol and Polian's roles with the AAF Photo: AAF It is still unclear what Dundon's investment means for Ebersol and Polian's roles with the AAF Photo: AAF

AAF co-Founder & CEO Charlie Ebersol said that the startup football operation "always had the money to meet payroll and has never been in any financial jeopardy" following Hurricanes Owner Tom Dundon's $250M cash infusion yesterday, according to Mike Bianchi of the ORLANDO SENTINEL. Ebersol said, "How people interpret the relationship (with Dundon) and how quickly it came together is their business." Bianchi notes initial reports "portrayed Dundon’s investment as a bailout, but Ebersol portrayed it as a buy-in." Ebersol also "portrayed it as if the league has gotten such rave reviews and is in such a premium bargaining position that Dundon couldn’t wait to invest." Ebersol "stopped short" of "admitting Dundon essentially now owns the Alliance" (ORLANDO SENTINEL, 2/20). In Philadelphia, Rob Tornoe reports a league source "didn’t dispute the reports of cash-flow problems." However, the source said with Dundon’s investment, the AAF would be “able to move our business to the next phase much faster.” It is "unclear what Dundon’s addition will mean for Ebersol" and fellow co-Founder Bill Polian, who positioned the AAF as a "developmental league for the NFL" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 2/20).

NOT DONE YET: Dundon said of his investment, "These guys did a really good job that first week and it looked like quality football and people watched it. So it was easy to do." In Raleigh, Chip Alexander notes an "easy question was whether Dundon being chairman of the league will quickly pave the way for an AAF team in Raleigh, playing at N.C. State’s Carter-Finley Stadium." Ebersol said, “It’s certainly something we’re talking about, absolutely." Dundon said that "no preliminary discussions have been held" with N.C. State about the use of the stadium (Raleigh NEWS & OBSERVER, 2/20). Dundon: "When startups raise capital, that's just how it is. You raise capital, hit certain milestones, you raise more capital. I would say that separating between the committed capital, and whether people were able to fund that capital, and how successful they were in quality of football and the ratings ... they have good players and coaches and good technology" (ESPN.com, 2/19). Dundon said he invested to "keep this thing for years and years to come." Dundon: "It’s not a viability issue, it’s just how good can it be now. ... There’s a difference between commitment and funding." He added, “I don’t build things with the idea to sell them, I build them with the idea to make them the best they can be" (“Adam & Joe,” WRAL-FM, 2/19).

ON THIN ICE? Birmingham Iron GM Joe Pendry acknowledged that a "payroll 'glitch' delayed players’ pay, but he disputed reports" that Dundon's investment was needed to "save the fledgling spring football league." Pendry said that players are "scheduled to be paid on the Friday after each game, but the league changed payroll companies last week," which "delayed players' weekly check until this week" (AL.com, 2/19). USA TODAY's Dan Wolken writes under the header, "No Surprise That AAF Already Finds Itself In Trouble." Dundon’s "emergency bailout of the league comes with a pretty important question: What, exactly, is he getting for his $250 million?" This seems like "buying at the top of the market for the notion that America doesn’t have enough football when, in fact, there’s a lot of evidence that the amount we get from August through the first week in February is exactly right." Startup football leagues do not work "because the calculus doesn’t change: While there may be an audience for this kind of league, it just isn’t very big" (USA TODAY, 2/20). In San Antonio, Mike Finger writes it would be "fantastic if time proves that Dundon is a genius for what he did this week." However, as "positive as the early buzz and TV ratings have been, they historically have waned after the curiosity factor wears off." The public is "savvy enough to recognize the difference in quality between a league starring Tom Brady and one dominated by Garrett Gilbert" (SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS, 2/20).

GETTING NFL'S ATTENTION: In Chicago, Phil Rosenthal writes few fledgling leagues "get absorbed by their more established rivals on a more or less equal basis." Having the NFL buy in would require the AAF to "thread a slender needle for Dundon to see a return on his outsize investment." If the AAF, which owns all eight of its teams, can "sell itself as place for would-be NFL players to be schooled on fundamentals and tested by game situations, perhaps it can sell itself to the NFL and become its official developmental league" (CHICAGO TRIBUNE, 2/20). Dundon said if anything the AAF does "helps the NFL, great," but acknowledged the NFL is "doing pretty well." Dundon: "I don’t start from a position of they need any help from me or anybody else, but if it does help them, that would be great” (“Adam & Joe,” WRAL-FM, 2/19). More Dundon: "The focus of this league is developing the players, coaches, and rules and if (the NFL) see some value in us, that would seem to make sense to exploit that” (“The Clubhouse with Kyle Bailey,” WFNZ-FM, 2/19).