Interesting post regarding the USMNT/USSF faceoff

[SirFozzie]

Mr. Levenstein Gives The Players' Side
Posted by: DJ Walker
01:28 PM ET / 10:28 AM PT

USMNTPA representative Mark Levenstein responds to a fan's email, setting out in great detail the players' side of this whole mess. It's a brief history of labor relations between the PA and the Fed, and a stinging indictment of the USSF as a whole. It's rather lengthy, but I thought it was worth reproducing in full. The source of the email is a post on another Soccer website, which is Big; if you catch my drift.

Russell -

Thank you for your email.

I started helping members of the National Team without compensation at all in 1992. I played soccer briefly in college in 1975 before an ankle injury ended my playing days. I was an assistant coach for the varsity and junior varsity teasm of the university where I attended law school during the fall in 1979, 1980, and 1981. Then, in 1992 I met a woman who was helping a number of the players, and I agreed to help her and to help them during 1992-1994, the years leading up to the World Cup. They were paid almost nothing. If you practiced for three weeks for a game and were on the roster but did not get into the game, the Federation paid you nothing. The players who started in 1993 received $200 and the substitutes $100 for some games. Leading up to the World Cup, the players went into residency in Mission Viejo and a couple of top players received pay at an annual rate of about $60,000, but most were at a rate around $20,000 to $30,000 and the Federation insisted on owning their "registration" through December 31, 1994, so if they wanted to go to a pro team after the 1994 World Cup, the team that wanted them had to pay the Federation to get them and at least 90% of that money went to the Federation. If the Federation asked the team that was interested for too much, they could not go to the pro team.

Prior to 1995 whenever a player complained about the way they were treated the Federation made sure the coach stopped calling that player in for games. When they selected player representatives to meet with the Federation on their behalf, to explain their grievances, those players were no longer called into camps.

After I got to know a number of the players, whenever the players were in DC for a game they would call me to come and meet with them to give them advice about all the outrageous things the Federation did -- for example have them appear in ads and commercials on behalf of Federation sponsors without paying them and making them wear only the clothing of the Federation's clothing sponsor from the moment they arrived at the airport to fly to a team camp, all through the camp, until they got off the airplane and arrived home from the camp.

While they made well under $100,000 per player for going to the second round of the World Cup in 1994, Alan Rothenberg, the head of the Federation, received $7 million for his efforts related to that World Cup and $50 million of World Cup 1994 profits were put in a new entity, the US Soccer Foundation, to be sure none of that money would go to players.

In 1995 they were so tired of being lied to and taken advantage of that on their own they went on strike in Uruguay during the Copa America tournament. They refused to come out of their rooms to practice for two days and finally the Federation agreed to honor promises previously made to the players (the Federation had promised them certain compensation and certain other things, and waited until they all got to Uruguay to tell them the Federation had changed its mind and withdrawn those benefits). The Federation chastised them severely for using "brinkmanship" and putting a major competition at risk and proposed that the players select a player representative to meet with the Federation to negotiate these issues and thereby avoid such problems. The players said they could not have a single player representative because the Federation would cut him -- they had to have five (5) player representatives. The logistics of having five players located all over the US and Europe (there was not yet an MLS) led them to call me in February 1996 and to ask me to meet with the Federation on their behalf.

So, I have been dealing with the Federation for nine years. In 1996 the Federation agreed to share profits from home games and was on the verge of a deal to share sponsorship revenue. We agreed that while negotiations were ongoing, no one would use "brinkmanship" and thereby put a game or competition at risk. Despite that promise, when we got close to the Fall-Winter 1996-1997 World Cup qualifiers, the leadership of the Federation did just that, reneging on the offer made by the Federation's Secretary General, saying they would never recognize a labor organization or union representing the National Team players, substituting a much worse offer, and telling the players they had to sign it or they would not be considered for the World Cup. They even scheduled a game against Peru for the sole purpose of having an earlier deadline to force the players to sign their regressive proposal. When the players refused to agree before the Peru game, the USSF used other players and lost 4-1 in Peru. Despite the Federation's outrageous conduct, the players signed the deal under protest just before the World Cup qualifiers and played the qualifiers under the absurdly low compensation unilaterally set by the Federation, BECAUSE THE PLAYERS CARED MORE ABOUT SOCCER IN THIS COUNTRY THAN ABOUT THEMSELVES. The NLRB eventually issued charges against the Federation and only under that threat and the fact that the NLRB would not settle until the USSF recognized the players' union, did the Federation finally recognize the US National Soccer Team Players Association in November 1997. While player compensation went up to a very limited extent in 1997-1998 as a result of the 18-month battle, it did not come close to getting the player compenation up from the absurdly low amounts the USSF had decreed to anything reasonable, but we were only negotiating a deal for 1997-1998 and the quadrennium was almost over (in November 1997, there were only 13 months left in the quadrennium and the players did not want the negotiations to interfere in any way with the 1998 World Cup).

For all the work my firm and I did from February 1996 through November 1997 (18 months) and all the expenses -- flying to Chicago and London for negotiation sessions, conference call expenses, an rbitration against the Federation that we won, over a year of battles, etc., our firm was paid less than $70,000 (over $30,000 for out-of-pocket expenses).

In 1996-1997, when Paul Caliguiri got into a dispute with MLS about the improper way that MLS treated him in a contract dispute, MLS personnel associated with the National Team made sure he never again was called into a National Team camp. The player with so many caps, who scored the 1988 Goal that put the US back in the World Cup, was thrown off the US National Team because he challenged the MLS's improper behavior (Caliguiri eventually won that arbitration on all grounds almost two years later, but he never got back the games and years on the National Team he lost).

In 1999, the Federation acknowledged that the players deserved to get a major increase in compensation, and acknowledged that they had some money, but said (a) they needed to get a few million in the Federation's reserve because USSF mismanagement had forced the USSF into bankruptcy several times before and they needed to avoid that, and (b) the players' three losses in the World Cup in France meant that the Federation's likely 1999-2002 sponsorship revenue was uncertain (and they claimed that was all the players' fault despite the terrible decisions made by the National Team coach, who was fired shortly thereafter). We agreed to take only nominal increases in 1999-2002 under two conditions: (a) the Federation would cooperate with and support the players off-the-field efforts (e.g., website, instructional videos, appearances and activities for charity, promotion of the players and the National Team, etc., and (b) if the players continued to play well (as they did in 1999 and 2000) and the Federation's economics improved, the USSF would raise the players' compensation substantially and finally start to pay the players something close to a fair share of the revenue and profits they generate for the USSF. The USSF agreed.

The players came through in a huge way on the field in 1999-2002 including the World Cup quarterfinals.

The Federation, on the other hand, reneged on all its promises to cooperate with the players' efforts off the field -- refusing to let players wear their jerseys in instructional videos, telling the players association, "if the agreements with the players allow us to say "No," the answer is "No" -- they were ahead of their time -- behaving like the Capital One commercial's guy who says "Puerto Ric-No," and "ReNO, Nevada," etc.

Then, in 1999 we began to see their books -- they made $11 million surplus in fiscal year 2002. They made $8.7 million surplus in fiscal year 2003. They made $3 million profit on the Women's World Cup in 2003 and are hiding it in a separate entity controlled by Federation Board members and employees. They have a $30 million surplus. They make $10 million per year profit on the men's National Team. They made $1.4 million profit on a single game in Houston in 2003 and paid the players a total of about $1 million in the entire year 2003.

Despite all of that, they have proposed an increase of about $300,000 per year to the players (not counting the World Cup).

In August 2003 and December 2003 they said they could not afford to pay the players what we are asking. They now admit that was a complete lie.

They tell the media that our players are paid as well as any other National Team. That is not even close to the truth.

They lie and say they only made $1.7 million profit on the men's National Team in 1999-2002. They do not mention that their calculation does not include any television or sponsorship revenue -- they say that has nothing to do with the National Team, but their own calculations show that the sponsorship revenue directly attributable to the men's National Team has been over $10 million since at least 2002. They do nto even include bonuses paid by sponsors based on the success of the US National Team as revenues of the US National Team. Yet, they continue to lie and say that they only made $1.7 million (I think they have now reduced that number to $1.1 million in their most recent misrepresentations to the media and the fans) profit and claim that the amounts the players are seeking would put the National Team in the red.

They made their completely inadequate proposal in February 2004, then refused to negotiate until they could meet directly with the players. It was difficult to arrange when the players would be together and could meet, but we arranged it October 6th in DC. At that meeting, they tried to negotiate individually with the players and made it clear that they do not believe the players know anything, but are just children. Instead, the players demonstrated that they understand completely the Federation's finances. They understand that well under 7% of the revenues from the US National Team are paid to the players while the NHL, MLB, NBA, and MLB all pay in excess of 60% of their revenues to the players. While many of those leagues pay players in excess of 60% of their revenues while teams are losing money, the USSF makes over $10 million per year profit on the US National Team and uses that money to pay for all the other National Teams and to increase their surplus, which they then give to the MLS and billionaire MLS owners. Less than 10% of the PROFIT from the US Men's National Team is paid to the players. In some years the US National Team coaching staff is paid more than ll the players combined. In non-World Cup years the two highest paid USSF employees together are paid more than all the US National Team players combined.

After the players took the time to meet with the Federation representatives, the USSF personnel promised a new offer, saying they now understood that the players did understand the situation and now the USSF would make a new offer.

Instead, the USSF leadership decided (a) to show the players that it does not matter that they are together and explained why they deserve a better deal -- the USSF unilaterally decides how much they will be paid, and (b) to show the players they will get nothing by sticking together and speaking with one voice (a continuation of that USSF anger that the players formed a union), the USSF not only refused to increase the February 2004 offer, but actually cut it in half, withdrawing the offer to increase 2003 and 2004 pay, even though the USSF had previously agreed in writing that any offer would be retroactive to January 1, 2003 (as had been the case in 1999-2002). Then the USSF said this is our final, take-it-or-leave it offer.

When the players refused to accept that offer, on December 3, 2003 the USSF wrote to say that as a result the January games had been cancelled and unless the players agreed to that offer by December 28th they would be locked out of the January training camp and unless they agreed by February 1, 2005 they will be locked out of the February 9th World Cup qualifier.

In addition, the USSF is completely dysfunctional -- a more than 40-member volunteer Board of Directors, no ethics policies enforced, no conflict of interest policies, three of their ten member executive committee have financial interests in the MLS, yet they vote not to give money to players and to give it to the MLS and MLS owners. They spend over $500,000 on Board meetings and over $300,000 on governance studies upon which they do not act. Their annual meeting in March will be at Disney World and their last meeting was at the Waldorf Astoria in New York (sound to you like they are being frugal and spending their money on the good of soccer?). The per diems for expenses paid to players are $30 domestic and $40 international, while they budget for their "volunteer" President to receive $50 to $100 in per diem expenses plus $25 per day in entertainment expense reimbursement. While players fly coach to games from all over the US, do you think their officers and volunteers and top employees do?

The USOC came under attack for busines practices that do not approach what goes on at the USSF, and 18 months ago Congress and the Independent Commission established by Congress and the US Olympic Committee Governance and Ethics Task Force all mandated reform of all national governing bodies (the forty-five organizations that included US Soccer, USA Swimming, USA Track & Field, US Ski and Snowboard, USA Bobseld and Skeleton, US Figure Skating Association, USA Equestrian, etc.) and absolutely nothing has been done except expensive governance consultants being paid for studies that are ignored.

They have $30 million in the bank, they have had profits of almost $12 million and $8.7 million in their most recent fiscal twelve-month period (2002 and 2003), and the players have requested an additional $1 million per year. They respond by breaching agreements and violating the federal labor laws and locking the players out to use the threat of hurting soccer in the US to try to force the players to accept an absurd agreement "for the good of the sport of soccer," and they lie to the media to try to turn the fans against the players.

[By the way, the way the Federation has treated the US National Women's Soccer Players over the past 14 years is at least as bad (it is difficult to compare) and probably can be said to have been much worse and they continue to treat the women players without respect and with disdain after all they have done for soccer in the United States, but that story will have to wait for another day.]

Through all of this, we do not attack them in the media, and only respond to questions when contacted by the media. We have a website we created to serve the US Soccer Community and advance charitable causes and we do not use it to attack them, because we have never done that in nine years despite their outrageous conduct throughout those years.

I have represented them for nine years and we work very hard to promote the players, to arrange appearances, to raise money for charity, to create programs that benefit charitable causes while promoting soccer and helping the youth soccer community.

They are role models -- no performance enhancing drug issues in 9 years, no DUI's/DWI's or arrests, they sign autographs and talk to kids and use their own money to pay for a website that benefits the US soccer community and to buy presents for kids with leukemia and to profile those kids on our website and to put the kids' names on bricks in a walkway at the Soccer Hall of Fame in Oneonta, New York, and to try to launch their own Allstars for Hope charitable foundation and to try to launch an annual charitable event in Las Vegas to raise money for their charities.

And the fans question their patriotism and their honor and their commitment to the sport and accuses them of being selfish and greedy. But they are doing it because they feel an obligation for the players who come after them. In the same way that the players in 1995, 1996 and 1997 endured abuse and Federation misconduct and made it possible for the players to have an association and the minimal compensation they receive, today's players feel an obligation to fight for reasonable compensation and, more important, for respect and fair treatment, for future National Team players. The easy route would be to accept the deal and play, but if the players who came before them had done that, they would not have an organization, they would not have a website, they would not have the potential to be helping the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society raise millions of dollars for cancer research and to help youth soccer organizations raise a half a million dollars per year in the near future, while encouraging kids to play soccer.

The last thing I want to do is be a part of hurting the US National Team's World Cup prospects, but what the Federation does to these players every year is simply terribly wrong, and sometimes someone has to stand up for what is right. So we do not blame the fans, we know they are being lied to by the Federation, and we do not blame the media, because the truth is not simple and the story takes a lot of lines to tell (just a small part of the story appears above), and the players cannot afford full-time personnel to combat the USSF's public relations staff. But, it simply is not fair to criticize the players or our players association or to suggest that we do not take our obligations to the sport seriously. The players love the fans of the US National Team and on their own applaud those fans after every game. They love the youth soccer community and appreciate all that community has done for them. Many players do not care about the amount of money at stake because if our proposals are accepted the players still will not receive fair compensation or enough to change their lives at all. But, to fold means the players who come after them would never receive fair compensation and may never be treated with respect by their own Federation. So, they simply cannot fold. They need to carry this through as long as it takes and to risk the fans not understanding that they are doing what has to be done becasue if someone does not stand up to the Federation and make them change the organization and how they treat people and how they mismanage their role as the national governing body for soccer, not just the players on the National Teams, but everyone who wants to see the sport of soccer advance in the United States will suffer for many years to come.

We cannot expect the fans or the media to understand, and we know you just want to see these players play. Trust me, all they want to do is play, but they know they have other obligations -- to do the right thing both on and off the field and they are just doing their best to make the right decisions, and they know there are often unfair consequences for people who stand up and do the right thing, but they have been willing to endure that for many years and they feel the need to pursue that path. So, you can say what you want and write what you want and jusge me as harshly as you choose -- that comes with the job of dealing with the USSF and their pattern of lying to the public, to the media, and even to their own Board members. But, please, you ask "what is wrong with" the players? Absolutely nothing. They are a tremendous group of individuals and an even more tremendous group when they get together and make decisions. They did not want to have the responsibility for making decisions and suffering criticism and hardships for other players who will come later, but they know the great players who preceded them -- Alexi Lalas, John Harkes, Mike Burns, Tab Ramos, Marcelo Balboa, Paul Caliguiri, Peter Vermes, Desmond Armstrong, Fernando Clavijo, Carlos Llamosa, and many of the players still with them who had to stand up to the Federation in the past -- Cobi Jones, Jeff Agoos, Tony Meola, Claudio Reyna, Brad Friedel, Kasey Keller, Brian McBride, all suffered for them and the appreciation for all they have done and the obligation they have passed down to step up for those who will come after is a very heavy burden that they take very seriously. That obligation, not the money, is the primary motivator in all of our discussions when they decide the course of action we will follow and the decisions we will make.

I have been involved in professional sports for over 20 years, and have represented players, athletes, leagues, players associations, sponsors, teams, owners, licensees, boxers, boxing promoters, sports organizations, sports associations, national governing bodies, etc. I have known and represented many professional athletes. I can tell you that the overall quality of the men who I have met who have played for the US National Team, as people, is unsurpassed. There are always selfish athletes and self-centered athletes and athletes who do not set high personal standards, but in my view with very minor exceptions the members of the US National Team are outstanding individuals and as a group they are tremendous and I attribute a lot of that to the sport of soccer, the United States youth soccer community, and the fact that they are playing a game they love, knowing that they are not going to make enough playing this sport to reture from working when they retire from playing -- they play the game because they love it, and many of them are outstanding athletes who could have played other, more lucrative sports. If youhave chosen to support this team and these players, I can tell you that you have selected a fine group of men who are deserving of your support.

I hope this is helpful and it gives you (a) a little better understanding of the players' situation, and (b) another reason for you to root for the players on the National Team when this is over and they go back to the easy part of their job -- playing soccer.

Yours in soccer,

Mark Levinstein
Acting Executive Director and Outside General Counsel
United States National Soccer Team Players Association

[Crapshoot]

Good for him. The USSF is a piece of shit, and always has been./

[JonInMiddleGA]

About like I figured it was.

[Chief Rum]

Even worse practices than I thought. This is something the government should take a proactive interest in. I usually side with management in these sorts of things, but this is just awful.

CR

[terpkristin]

Hey Fozzie,
Do you know if that letter is allowed to be reposted?
Not so much because I'm "worried" about it here as I'd like to either link to it from my blog or just put the full text there.

Some of this I knew about before reading the entire thing.
The entire mess is completely reprehensible, and may be considered abuse of our national team players.

~tk

[Joe]

thats one long ass email

[SirFozzie]

Originally Posted by terpkristin

Hey Fozzie,
Do you know if that letter is allowed to be reposted?
Not so much because I'm "worried" about it here as I'd like to either link to it from my blog or just put the full text there.

Some of this I knew about before reading the entire thing.
The entire mess is completely reprehensible, and may be considered abuse of our national team players.

~tk

One sec, I'll give you a link to the post on BigSoccer and to the place where I found it (through google news)

[SirFozzie]

BTW, I just saw a story that 22 players have gathered for the USMNT camp. Not a single player plays in MLS or overseas.

[SirFozzie]

http://blog.matchnight.com/blogindex...commentID=3075 <-- the site I found through Google News

http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showt...ght=Levenstein <--- The original post

[GrantDawg]

Originally Posted by SirFozzie

BTW, I just saw a story that 22 players have gathered for the USMNT camp. Not a single player plays in MLS or overseas.

They are all A-league players?

[GrantDawg]

Just found my answer. Yes, they are. Oh, goodness. We really want to end any interest for soccer in States, don't we.

[SirFozzie]

Originally Posted by GrantDawg

They are all A-league players?

From the story I read, some of them are former outdoor players currently playing indoor soccer. the rest would be a-league players I would assume

A travesty and a farce.

They TRIED to contact 20 MLS players, but to a man they all turned em down