Poll Reveals Public 2-1 in Favour of NFL Players Over CBA

view helvetica, health sans-serif;”>A national poll conducted by Bloomberg last week has revealed that 43 per cent of those surveyed side with the players union and 20 per cent with the National Football League (NFL) owners with regards to the labour dispute in the game. The remaining 37 per cent either don’t follow football or aren’t sure which side they favor.

advice helvetica, sans-serif;”>David Carter, executive director of the Sports Business Institute at the University of Southern California, said in an interview“Fans live vicariously through the players, and are more sympathetic to player causes.”

Among the issues are what share of the league’s US$9 billion in revenue players should get and whether to expand the season to 18 from 16 games and impose a rookie wage scale.

The NFL Players Association has rejected owners’ demands and say the teams should open their accounting books. The union is also seeking improved health care for retirees, some of whom suffer from nerve damage, joint deterioration and the effects of repeated head trauma.

While the NFL has offered to reveal some financial data, it has refused to show everything the union sought. The NFL said the data offered is more than has ever made available to the union, including some information that it doesn’t disclose to its own clubs.