If the Arena Football League comes back in 2010 — and that’s a big if — look for a financial structure that includes centralized management and operations.
If the Arena Football League comes back in 2010 — and that’s a big if — look for a financial structure that includes centralized management and operations.
That seems to be the consensus from league and team officials we chatted with yesterday, as they evaluated the fallout from the decision by the Board of Governors to shutter the 2009 season.
Centralized administration, however, tends to be a formula that doesn’t work in sports. At the end of the day, all sports are local, whether it’s the salesperson calling on a sponsor or the PR person drumming up interest among the local television stations. Judging by the information released by teams announcing layoffs, AFL teams are run pretty close to the vest, with 10 or so dedicated employees per team the norm, and the vast majority of these folks working on ticket and sponsorship sales. Centralizing these basic tasks could be a recipe for disaster.
RELATED STORIES: Teams come to terms with AFL shutdown; AFL board votes to shut down 2009 season
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