AAFL On the Outs?

BartonK · Mar 8, 2008

The website now says that the opener is still scheduled for April 12, and that training camp will just be compressed. No more mention of postponing until 2009.

friend of a friend · Mar 8, 2008

BartonK said:

The website now says that the opener is still scheduled for April 12, and that training camp will just be compressed. No more mention of postponing until 2009.
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too bad

dog428 · Mar 9, 2008

I don't think it's quite time for champagne just yet.

The All American Football League is close to finalizing television and satellite radio deals, league acting Commissioner Keenan Davis said Friday. Whether that entices potential investors to salvage the AAFL remains to be seen.

Cedric Dempsey, the AAFL board chairman, said the NFL Network is an option. The bigger struggle now is finding investors to fund $25 million to $30 million to cover expenses for the entire inaugural season, Dempsey said.
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Yeah, they're right there. Total cost for the first season: $25 to $30 million. Total amount the AAFL is short: $25 to $30 million.

http://www.al.com/sports/birminghamnews/index.ssf?/base/sports/12049677074610.xml&coll=2

Here's my favorite part from a story the day before:

This isn't the first time the AAFL has encountered financial problems. The league delayed its scheduled opening in 2007 for a year because of funding.

Cedric Dempsey, the chairman of the league's board and former NCAA president, said last June the AAFL could operate for the first year without TV revenue thanks to ticket sales and fan sponsorship. He cited fan interest in Florida as being the key.

The Gainesville Sun reported season-ticket sales have been poor across the league, and that Team Florida has sold the most at about $300,000 worth of tickets. That translates to about 4,000 season tickets.

Katz said the AAFL board of directors had cautioned him that not many advance tickets would be sold due to public skepticism from unsuccessful professional football leagues in the past.

"I didn't really want to hear that. I wanted everybody to trust us," Katz said.

The AAFL initially said players would be paid $100,000. Because workers' compensation accounts for 47 percent of payroll, teams have since been limited to six franchise players at $100,000 each and the remaining players get $50,000, Katz said.
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The AAFL, sure to be a smashing success.

JayFarrar · Mar 13, 2008

I was told that they were going to be getting word on this season, at some point today (Thursday, March 13).
The hope is that they will play, but that they don't have any money and that the pre-sale of season tickets has been very, very bad. Only two teams have sold over 1,000 tickets and that the total sold is under 10,000. One team, I think Florida, is leading the straggling pack with about half of the total tickets sold.

Inky_Wretch · Mar 13, 2008

The AAFL players need to use those required college degrees and get real jobs, because they aren't getting $50,000 from the league.

nafselon · Mar 13, 2008

Going going gone

AAFL Website said:

ATLANTA, GA -- The All American Football League® (AAFL) announced today the postponement of its inaugural season until 2009. The League will continue to build upon the foundation that has been established, and will continue to discuss opportunities with potential investors.

AAFL sponsors have committed to remain on board for the 2009 season. Currently, the League has corporate partnerships with New Balance, Baden Sports and Rogers Athletic. Also still in place for the 2009 season are a national radio partnership with Touchdown Radio & SportsDay Productions, and an internet broadcast partnership with PlayOn! Sports, a division of Turner Broadcasting.

"We are so very fortunate to have built partnerships with companies who are partners in the truest sense of the word," said Keenan Davis, AAFL VP of League Operations and COO. "We sincerely appreciate their support as we progress toward our new goal of a 2009 inaugural season."

All fans who have purchased tickets to 2008 AAFL games will receive a full refund. Credit cards will be credited and any checks received will be returned.

Additional details regarding the AAFL's postponement are forthcoming.
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friend of a friend · Mar 13, 2008

woo-hoo!

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