A Breakdown of How Shareholders Pay the Green Bay Packers
Owning an NFL team is a huge investment. Wealthy families own several NFL franchises, which have been passed down for generations. For the Green Bay Packers, however, things are different. They are the only non-profit, community-owned NFL team. So, how do shareholders pay the Green Bay Packers? Here is a breakdown.
How did the team come to be owned by shareholders?
Most teams have franchise owners. So how did the Packers get owned in this unique way? According to Vice, it wasn’t always this way. At one time, the team did have owners. Founded in 1919 by Earl Lambeau and George Calhoun, the team almost went out of business within one year. So a franchise fee was paid for them to join the Professional Football Association.
After a scandal in which the team was caught using members of Notre Dame’s football team with fake names, the owner of the team was forced to withdraw from the association, which by then was known as the National Football League.
The team tried to get started again a few years later. But it was so burdened with debt that things didn’t work out. As a result, the non-profit Green Bay Packers Corporation began and the first public offering of Green Bay Packers stock was made. Since then, the team has been owned by shareholders, with over 5 million shares and led by a seven-member executive committee.
Who runs the franchise?
Mark Murphy is the president and CEO of the Green Bay Packers, and the executive committee does the hard work such as directing corporate management and approving expenses. The Board of Directors list is pretty long, proving that it takes a great team both on and off the field to make exciting things happen.
While the shareholders get the task of voting in order to elect the Board of Directors and executive committee, it turns out that their jobs pretty much end there. Shareholders don’t get to give input on anything else that has to do with the team. Still, it must be pretty amazing to be a shareholder for the Packers, although the stock really doesn’t have any monetary value.
How do the shareholders pay the Green Bay Packers?
This one-of-a-kind situation often leads fans to ask how the shareholders pay the Green Bay Packers. For the 2020 season, details Fansided, the team’s salary cap hasn’t left much room to negotiate. They will likely be extending some contracts, which seems just fine with fans. So, what are the salaries looking like for the team?
Well, some of the most lucrative contracts of 2020 are those of Aaron Rodgers, David Bakhtiari, and Davante Adams. The lowest-paid include Simon Stepaniak and Jonathan Garvin. One of the most controversial contracts of the season? That goes to Jordan Love, who got something that not many other players get, reports CBS Sports. He is the first player who is a 26th overall pick who is receiving money that is fully guaranteed.
