It's been a long time in the making, and has been deterred twice, but Tony Romo and Andy Alberth's National Fantasy Football Convention event is finally going to happen this upcoming weekend in Dallas. Fantasy football is as big now as it ever was and despite what the NFL believes, it was created by fans, not the league. BTB loves their fantasy football and as a multiple-time league champion, it was amazing to interview Andy Alberth as this event is set to begin. BTB will be represented at the NFFC events this weekend as my colleague RJ Ochoa and I will both be in attendance.

We interviewed Andy Alberth to get a fuller understanding of the event.

SISEMORE: This has been a long process but it's finally happening. Many people don't actually know what hoops you and Tony had to jump through, please describe the difficulty it took to bring the fans this amazing experience.

ALBERTH: It definitely has been a very long process. Taking on an organization as powerful as the NFL is never easy. There were definitely points where we thought about pulling the plug. But honestly, people from all around the world (especially Cowboys Nation) and current NFL players reached out to us and asked us to keep fighting. That sort of support showed us there was still fan backing behind this idea and really motivated us all to pull it off. We have an incredible and hardworking legal team that has backed us the entire way. We’re close to pulling this thing off and I think the fans are going to love it.

SISEMORE: How did this idea for the NFFC even come together, what was the origin?

ALBERTH: I was actually at dinner with my good friend, Mark Hulme, one night. Mark is really a “Convention Guru” and has had immense success putting on some of the biggest trade shows in the country. He’s a football guy and came up with this idea while we were talking. I was inspired and we got to work on it almost immediately. It’s been hard work, but I’m inspired every day to make this happen, the support we’ve had from the fans and players has been humbling and I’m excited for this week.

SISEMORE: What sets NFFC apart from any fan interaction that NFL fans have been accustomed to?

ALBERTH: No question, it’s the access to the players. We have so many players that are thrilled to be a part of this thing and are going to be interacting with the fans every day. BTB's readers should know that Ezekiel Elliott, Jason Witten, Charles Haley and Darren Woodson are just a few of the Cowboys legends that will be participating and interacting. In addition to the access to the players, fans will also have direct access to the top fantasy football experts in the country. There is no question that fans will leave this convention a better fantasy football player and primed to win their leagues.

SISEMORE: What eventually led to the NFL backing off and allowing an amazing event like this happen?

ALBERTH: I don’t know if they’ve necessarily backed off. We are still going to court with them later this year and will, of course, see what happens.

SISEMORE: As a huge fan of Tony Romo, who will miss seeing number nine on the field, tell me how Tony Romo is dealing with his new career path at CBS? Tony's competitive, how long will it be before Romo is one of the best in the business and how will he be remembered in NFL history in your mind, as a close friend of his?

ALBERTH: This should come as no surprise to anyone who has supported and followed Tony, but he’s working hard at being one of the best already. He’s putting in the time and preparing as if he was strapping on a helmet. As long as I’ve known him, he’s always been extremely diligent and really focuses on his fundamentals.

I don’t know how long it will take for people to consider Tony as one of the best in the business, but there’s no doubt that he will not rest until he gets to that level. As far as how he will be remembered in NFL history? I think he’ll be remembered as one of the best players to ever wear the Star. I think that football fans will always respect his game, I mean his career passer rating will speak for itself and his career highlights are truly incredible. But at the end of the day, he’ll be in the Ring of Honor (should be in the Hall of Fame as well) and I know that Cowboys Nation will always hold a special place in their hearts for him.

We want to thank Andy Alberth for his time and once more just let you all know that this NFFC event is going to be incredible for those true fantasy football gurus out there. For anyone in the Dallas area this weekend, go check out GoNFFC.com for more information and to grab your tickets.

This is an extremely exciting event for fantasy football but it's equally exciting for fans of the many players that are going to be involved. Check back to BTB for coverage of this event and keep your eyes peeled for our fantasy football articles that will be here before you know it.