New Amsterdam FC Issues Equity to Every Professional Player, Likely Becoming the Only Professional Sports Club in the World to Issue Ownership to All Players
New Amsterdam Football Club, a professional soccer team that plays in the National Independent Soccer Association, has announced that all current and future professional players effective immediately will be issued equity in the form of shares in the club in the form of additional compensation. The club believes to the best of its knowledge that with this action it has become the only professional sports club in the world to issue ownership to all current and future players.
NEW YORK, Oct. 6, 2021 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- New Amsterdam Football Club, a professional soccer team that plays in the National Independent Soccer Association, has announced that all current and future professional players effective immediately will be issued equity in the form of shares in the club in the form of additional compensation. The club believes to the best of its knowledge that with this action it has become the only professional sports club in the world to issue ownership to all current and future players.
This isn't a new academic concept, but has not been implemented broadly across professional sports. According to an article in The Atlantic, Fay Vincent, former commissioner of Major League Baseball wrote an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal titled Ballplayers Deserve a Stake in their Team. A few key points discussed in the article and related points that New Amsterdam believes in are as follows:
The first is that the club is built on the hard work of the players and therefore they should own a piece of the club they are helping to build. The club was started by a group of entrepreneurial players.
The concept of employees owning equity in the company they work for is common across all other industries except for professional sports. It's commonplace for an engineer at a tech startup to be issued employee stock options. Who knows what NISA or New Amsterdam might be worth in the future? The equity could be extremely valuable the same way that equity at a seed stage tech startup is.
Players who are only paid a salary and don't earn equity, are taxed at higher income tax rates than capital gains tax rates. Players should have the right to own equity the same way that owners do. This addresses a major tax inequity between owners and players.
Fans across soccer leagues around the world own equity in their clubs and players are equally important stakeholders that should be able to own a piece of their club.
A CBS article titled, "NBA players interested in negotiating for ownership stakes in teams in next CBA, says Michele Roberts" pointed out, "In theory, players owning equity could prove to be a somewhat elegant solution to the league's current issue with superstar movement. Perhaps players would be more inclined to remain with small-market or non-competitive teams if they were financially incentivized to help turn those teams around. That sort of investment might create a sort of economic loyalty that would make it easier for certain teams to retain their best players. For now, this is just an idea, and an unlikely one at that. But it's one that recognizes the reality that players are missing out on the most lucrative element of their own business."
Another example comes from the NBA -> Dwayne Wade is the latest NBA athlete to become a small stake investor in a sports team with his recent investment in the Utah Jazz, "... Unfortunately, people in my community don't get this opportunity, and I do not take it lightly to have this opportunity. To make real change, this is where you have to be–at the top—and Ryan knows that. I'm thankful for him, and I know too that I bring a lot to this partnership outside of just my basketball knowledge and skills."
Other players in professional sports such as Tim Howard have co-owned the club they've played for and all of our players should have the same right: "Tim Howard returns to the net with Memphis 901 FC, USL Championship club he co-owns". Didier Drogba did the same at Phoenix Rising (The Guardian - Didier Drogba joins US side Phoenix Rising as player and co-owner). Drogba said, "'To own a team and be a player is unusual but it's going to be exciting'".
New Amsterdam Football Club was founded by a group of players who had the desire to form a professional grassroots football club in their local community. These players both play for the team and have helped to develop the business side of the club. The founders of the clubs are players and we believe that every player should have the right to be an owner in the club.
About New Amsterdam Football Club
New Amsterdam Football Club is a professional soccer team that plays in the National Independent Soccer Association. The club was founded by a group of players who wanted to bring a professional grassroots football club to their local community. The club seeks to both compete at the professional level and have a social impact in the local community. The club's website is http://www.nafcny.com. For inquiries, please contact [email protected].
Media Contact
Laurence Girard, Fruit Street Health, +1 6179810920, [email protected]
SOURCE New Amsterdam Football Club
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