Despite a compelling argument made by my B-W Blogway colleague, BalTimore Bisk in support of the Pittsburgh Steelers, I will be rooting for the Green Bay Packers this Sunday. My rationale is simple: the Packers are not the Steelers. Therefore, I am hoping Aaron Rodgers breaks some Super Bowl Records and Clay Matthews breaks Big Ben's nose (word on the street is Haloti Ngata gave him a few tips). I'll also receive some satisfaction that the pissant that was sitting next to me at the Ravens vs. Steelers playoff game a few weeks ago, whose Terrible Towel was repeatedly waved far too close to my face, will be crying himself to sleep. I think you should be rooting for the Packers as well for these reasons, but also because of the unique and feel-good nature of the Packers franchise. I invite you to join the 112,120 individuals who will be cheering especially hard for the Packers on Sunday. These individuals I am referring to are the owners of the Green Bay Packers. Unlike every other NFL team, the Packers are publicly-owned.
The history and establishment of the Packers as a publicly-owned franchise is quite interesting, so let me ramble for a moment or two here. Earl L. 'Curly' Lambeau, born in Green Bay in 1898, was a star high school football player and went onto Notre Dame in 1918. An illness kept Lambeau home from college after his freshman year (the Irish coach at the time was Knute Rockne by the way), and he began working at the Indian Packing Company, a meat-packing plant in Green Bay. Lambeau missed playing football, so in the summer of 1919 he helped organize a local team and convinced his employer to put up money for uniforms and equipment. For its first two seasons, the team played games against other teams from small towns in Wisconsin and Michigan. In 1921, Lambeau convinced the Indian Packing Company to put up $50 to buy the Packers a franchise in the newly formed American Professional Football Association (later renamed the National Football League). With increased competition in the APFA, recruiting talent outside of Green Bay was necessary to stay competitive. Thus in 1923, a group of five area businessmen got together and launched the Green Bay Football Corporation, a nonprofit entity to provide financial backing for the team. Shares of stock sold for $5 each and paid no dividends. Purchasers were obligated to buy at least six season tickets. The corporation had a five-member executive committee and 15 elected directors. As a nonprofit, the corporation was tax-exempt, and all profits were to go to the American Legion. The organization had financial difficulties during the Depression and was placed into receivership, later to emerge as the Green Bay Packers, Inc.
Current shareholders own stock that produce no dividends, and all profits are now contributed to the Green Bay Packers Foundation, which makes donations to many charities and institutions throughout Wisconsin. The team is currently run by a seven-member Executive Committee, elected from a 45-member board of directors. The 4,750,937 shares have voting rights, the stock cannot appreciate in value (though private sales often exceed the face value of the stock), and stock ownership brings no season ticket privileges. No shareholder may own over 200,000 shares, a safeguard to ensure that no individual can assume control of the club. This ownership structure is in direct violation of current NFL by-laws, which stipulate a limit of 32 owners of one team and one of those owners having a minimum 30% stake. However, the Packers were grandfathered when the NFL's current ownership policy was established in the 1980s, and are thus exempt. In addition, the Packers are the only NFL team that publicly releases its Income Statement. http://joe.bowman.net/Statement.htm
I don't think this ownership structure could work on a large scale basis, but it works in Green Bay. You need absolutely die-hard fans that are basically willing to dig into their own pocket when needed. This die-hardiness was proven in 1997 when the Packers had a stock offering of shares at $200 apiece to pay for stadium improvements and establish an endowment for future renovations. The offering raised over $20 million. The opening page of the information sheet laid things out quite clearly: ''It is virtually impossible for anyone to realize a profit on a purchase of common stock or even to recoup the amount initially paid to acquire such common stock.'' However, this structure would have served Baltimore well in preventing the Baltimore Colts exodus to Indianapolis and right now it sounds like a far better option than the Peter Angelos-owned Baltimore Orioles. It would also legitimize statements that imply that some random guy actually is a member of the Ravens...."We just can't seem to beat Pittsburgh when it really counts."
How can you not cheer for a team that donates millions of dollars to charities each year, is named after a meat-packing plant and is NOT the Steelers.
Go Pack Go!!!
The history and establishment of the Packers as a publicly-owned franchise is quite interesting, so let me ramble for a moment or two here. Earl L. 'Curly' Lambeau, born in Green Bay in 1898, was a star high school football player and went onto Notre Dame in 1918. An illness kept Lambeau home from college after his freshman year (the Irish coach at the time was Knute Rockne by the way), and he began working at the Indian Packing Company, a meat-packing plant in Green Bay. Lambeau missed playing football, so in the summer of 1919 he helped organize a local team and convinced his employer to put up money for uniforms and equipment. For its first two seasons, the team played games against other teams from small towns in Wisconsin and Michigan. In 1921, Lambeau convinced the Indian Packing Company to put up $50 to buy the Packers a franchise in the newly formed American Professional Football Association (later renamed the National Football League). With increased competition in the APFA, recruiting talent outside of Green Bay was necessary to stay competitive. Thus in 1923, a group of five area businessmen got together and launched the Green Bay Football Corporation, a nonprofit entity to provide financial backing for the team. Shares of stock sold for $5 each and paid no dividends. Purchasers were obligated to buy at least six season tickets. The corporation had a five-member executive committee and 15 elected directors. As a nonprofit, the corporation was tax-exempt, and all profits were to go to the American Legion. The organization had financial difficulties during the Depression and was placed into receivership, later to emerge as the Green Bay Packers, Inc.
Current shareholders own stock that produce no dividends, and all profits are now contributed to the Green Bay Packers Foundation, which makes donations to many charities and institutions throughout Wisconsin. The team is currently run by a seven-member Executive Committee, elected from a 45-member board of directors. The 4,750,937 shares have voting rights, the stock cannot appreciate in value (though private sales often exceed the face value of the stock), and stock ownership brings no season ticket privileges. No shareholder may own over 200,000 shares, a safeguard to ensure that no individual can assume control of the club. This ownership structure is in direct violation of current NFL by-laws, which stipulate a limit of 32 owners of one team and one of those owners having a minimum 30% stake. However, the Packers were grandfathered when the NFL's current ownership policy was established in the 1980s, and are thus exempt. In addition, the Packers are the only NFL team that publicly releases its Income Statement. http://joe.bowman.net/Statement.htm
I don't think this ownership structure could work on a large scale basis, but it works in Green Bay. You need absolutely die-hard fans that are basically willing to dig into their own pocket when needed. This die-hardiness was proven in 1997 when the Packers had a stock offering of shares at $200 apiece to pay for stadium improvements and establish an endowment for future renovations. The offering raised over $20 million. The opening page of the information sheet laid things out quite clearly: ''It is virtually impossible for anyone to realize a profit on a purchase of common stock or even to recoup the amount initially paid to acquire such common stock.'' However, this structure would have served Baltimore well in preventing the Baltimore Colts exodus to Indianapolis and right now it sounds like a far better option than the Peter Angelos-owned Baltimore Orioles. It would also legitimize statements that imply that some random guy actually is a member of the Ravens...."We just can't seem to beat Pittsburgh when it really counts."
How can you not cheer for a team that donates millions of dollars to charities each year, is named after a meat-packing plant and is NOT the Steelers.
Go Pack Go!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment