Categories
Arena Football Contract Negotiation Headline

A Look At The Arena Football League’s New Collective Bargaining Agreement

Arena Football League

Since August 10, 2012, the Arena Football League (AFL) has been operating pursuant to a new collective bargaining agreement (embedded at the bottom of this article).  The CBA will be in effect until September 30, 2017, when the players’ union and the AFL teams will once again go through the painstaking process of negotiating another agreement (if they do not reach a resolution ahead of time).  There are a lot of people hoping that the next round of negotiations are much less painful.

This past round of negotiations almost resulted in a lockout of AFL players.  The teams set a deadline by which negotiations had to result in a compromise or else games would be lost.  While the NBA survived (and maybe even benefited from) a recent lockout and loss of games, it would be difficult to imagine the AFL having the same fate.  In 2009, an entire AFL season was lost due to a lockout, and still today very few people are clamoring about wins and losses in the league.

But there is no need to speculate as to what might have been.  Instead, players and teams will operate under the August 10, 2012 CBA.  And considering that this website’s focus is primarily on sports agency, let’s take a look at Article 7 of the CBA, which discusses Player-Agents and Agent Certification.

Section 7.1.

A Player may always represent himself with regards to negotiating and signing an AF1 SPC. No one other than the Player or his AFLPU Certified Agent may represent a Player in negotiating or signing his AF1 SPC. A Player, if he so desires, may designate an agent to conduct to assist and/or represent him in negotiation of an AFL SPC, provided that, if the Union develops and implements an agent certification program, the agent is certified by the Union as authorized to act as a Player Agent for such purposes. Players negotiating to transfer out of AFL may designate an agent as permitted by the League they are transferring to.

Section 7.2.

If the Union develops and implements an agent certification program, the Union shall provide the AFL with a comprehensive list of the certified Player Agents that Players have designated to act on their behalf for the purposes set forth in this Article VII and the Union shall provide the League with the official agent certification procedures. Changes to the official agent certification procedures shall be provided to the League within 48 hours of implementation by the Union.

Section 7.3.

If, pursuant to Section 7.2, the Union notifies the AFL that a Player has designated a certified Player Agent(s) to act on his behalf for the purposes described in this Section, the AFL must negotiate the items specified herein to be included in the Player’s SPC with the designated Player Agent.

Section 7.4.

The Union’s agent-certification program shall include a procedure for AFL to file complaints with the Union about conduct of certified Player Agents, so that the Union may investigate any complaint and provide a response to the AFL.

Section 7.5.
The League shall provide the Union a copy of all executed SPC’s within 48 hours of receiptby the League via facsimile, email or certified mail.

Final Arena Football League Cba 2012

By Darren Heitner

Darren Adam Heitner, Esq., is a preeminent sports attorney and the founder of Heitner Legal, P.L.L.C., a Fort Lauderdale-based law firm specializing in sports law, contract negotiations, intellectual property, and arbitration. He earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Florida Levin College of Law in 2010 and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, magna cum laude, from the University of Florida in 2007, where he was named Valedictorian of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Admitted to practice in the state bars of Florida, New York, and the District of Columbia, as well as multiple federal courts, Darren also serves as a certified arbitrator with the American Arbitration Association.

As an adjunct professor, Darren imparts his expertise through teaching Sports Law at the University of Florida Levin College of Law and Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) at the University of Miami School of Law in the Entertainment, Arts, and Sports Law LL.M. program. His scholarly contributions include authoring several books published by the American Bar Association, such as How to Play the Game: What Every Sports Attorney Needs to Know, and numerous articles in prominent publications like Forbes, Inc. Magazine, and Above the Law. His thought leadership in NIL has earned him recognition as one of the foremost experts by The Wall Street Journal, USA TODAY, and On3, and he has been lauded as a “power player in NIL deals” by Action Network and a “top sports trademark attorney” by Sportico.

Darren’s passion for sports law led him to establish Sports Agent Blog on December 31, 2005, initially titled “I Want To Be A Sports Agent.” The platform, created as a New Year’s resolution, has grown into a cornerstone of the sports agency community, offering in-depth analysis of industry trends, legal disputes, and agent-player dynamics. His commitment to the field is further evidenced by his representation of numerous athletes and sports agents, as well as his prior role as an Adjunct Professor at Indiana University Bloomington, where he developed and taught a course on Sport Agency Management from 2011 to 2014.

Darren’s contributions have been recognized with prestigious honors, including the University of Florida’s 40 Under 40 Award, the University of Florida Levin College of Law’s Outstanding Young Alumnus Award, and designation as the best lawyer in Fort Lauderdale by Fort Lauderdale Magazine. He remains an active voice in the sports law community, sharing insights through his weekly NIL newsletter and his X posts, engaging a broad audience on legal developments in sports.