NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue and league execs urged
L.A. bid groups led by Michael Ovitz and Eli Broad "to play
nice with each other and come up and merge," according to
Steve Dilbeck of the L.A. DAILY NEWS. This marked the
"first time the NFL had directly pushed for a joint effort"
for an L.A. expansion team. Tagliabue: "We've talked to
both groups about coming together and unifying their
efforts. ... We don't have any specific thinking about what
form their working together would take on." Broad said that
his "door is open" to any merger, but, "I want to remain the
principal owner." Dilbeck writes that "few ... have been
able to visualize the two strong-willed men coming
together." Yesterday in Atlanta, Tagliabue "all but
endorsed" Ovitz's plans for a renovated Coliseum: "I think
the plan offered by Michael Ovitz presents exactly the kind
of vision that we feel is necessary to transform the venue
in the best interests of the fans and the city of Los
Angeles." But Broad said, "Ovitz brought a very nice model,
which some of them liked very much. The problem is really
very simple. They realized during our presentation that it
couldn't be built. Plus, there's no way the state is going
to fund their $225 million for parking garages" (L.A. DAILY
NEWS, 5/26). In Houston, John Williams writes that NFL
execs "rankled Broad" yesterday when they waited until after
he flew back to L.A. to "ask that he make a presentation
before the entire ownership group." Two of Broad's
assistants made his presentation, while "Ovitz and his
entire entourage were on hand for theirs." Meanwhile,
despite Marvin Davis' reported interest in bidding for the
team, Expansion Committee Chair Jerry Richardson said he
believed that the NFL will not entertain other suitors for
an L.A. franchise (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 5/26).
MARKET QUESTIONS: Ovitz: "I'm not 100 percent convinced
LA will embrace NFL football. I think people are pretty fed
up with NFL football. We have to bring the fans back. ...
We have to relight their fire" (BOSTON GLOBE, 5/26).
WHERE'S THE VISION? In L.A., T.J. Simers wonders, "What
is this, the 20th or 21st NFL owners' meeting directing
attention at Los Angeles?" The league has scheduled another
session for July 28, "apparently because the owners are
having such a good time asking L.A.-area billionaires to
jump through hoops for them." Simers: "This much is clear
after almost five years without football and all these
meetings: The NFL has no idea what it is doing, what it
wants or how it's going to get it done." Asked when L.A.
can expect the league to choose an owner, Tagliabue said, "I
don't know." Simers: "It's a farce. ... The longer the
process, the more the nonsense, the more everyone becomes
turned off -- at a time when Ovitz, Broad and the NFL should
be courting the fans of Los Angeles and the money in their
pockets" (L.A. TIMES, 5/26). In Long Beach, Bob Keisser
calls the NFL's actions "a classic scam." Keisser: "What
the NFL ostensibly is doing is putting Los Angeles and its
political leaders against the wall in search of the league's
favorite kind of money -- public money" (Long Beach PRESS-
TELEGRAM, 5/26). Raiders Owner Al Davis: "The league has
been working on this for the last four years, and it all
comes down to parking" (USA TODAY, 5/26).
L.A. NEWS & NOTES: John Elway's agent Marvin Demoff
tells the L.A. DAILY NEWS that the former Broncos QB has "a
deepening comfort level" with Broad. Broad, on Elway's
potential partnership in an L.A. bid: "He indicated that if
he does anything, he'd do it with us" (L.A. DAILY NEWS,
5/26)....CNBC's "Entertainment Inc." listed the four
wealthiest people in L.A., with Davis and Broad finishing
second and third, respectively. Davis' net worth was listed
at $4.7B, with Broad's at $4.3B (CNBC, 5/25).
