Appearing again before the Senate in search of legal
protection to restrain franchise movement, NFL Commissioner Paul
Tagliabue yesterday "assailed teams that sue the league to assert
their rights to hopscotch cities for sweetheart deals," according
to this morning's N.Y. TIMES. Tagliabue told the Senate
Judiciary Committee: "They get the benefit of the league for 15
years, and when it suits their fancy, they sue the league."
Tagliabue's central complaint is that the federal courts view the
NFL's 30 teams "as competitors, not joint-venture partners where
one cannot exist without the other." Tagliabue seeks a limited
antitrust exemption to shield the league from challenges to
league votes on team movement. Several senators were said to be
"sympathetic" (Richard Sandomir, N.Y. TIMES, 1/24). Senate
Judiciary Chair Orrin Hatch (R-UT) said he hopes to have a bill
within three months that narrows MLB's antitrust exemption while
broadening it for the NFL and other leagues in the case of
franchise relocation (Ken Denlinger, WASHINGTON POST, 1/24).
TV COVERAGE: ESPN's Bob Ley reported Tagliabue "took a veiled
shot at Art Modell's threatened legal action" in his testimony.
Tagliabue said chances of such a law being passed this year were
"a long shot," especially because it is an election year
("SportsCenter," 1/23). CNBC's Sue Herera reported that Sen.
DeWine plans to introduce new legislation today to block the
Browns proposed move to Baltimore ("Sports View," 1/23). CBS
noted Tagliabue's appearance, while Bernard Goldberg's "America"
segment focused on franchise relocation. Goldberg: "We used to
think it was too much of a sport to be a business. Now, we know
the truth. It's too much of a business to simply be a sport"
("CBS Evening News," 1/23).
