AAF was in danger of making payroll on Friday until an NHL owner stepped up with a 250 million dollar investment
The AAF has been pretty impressive, but they were having a hard time paying the players according to the Athletic. There were reports that the league was in danger of not making payroll on Friday, but Tom Dundon the owner of the Carolina Hurricanes stepped up and invested 250 million dollars and will become the league’s new chairman.
Dundon is a 47 year old and former CEO of the Dallas-based lending firm Santander Consumer USA. He is the co-found of Trinity Forest Golf Club in Dallas as well, the home of the PGA Tour’s AT&T Byron Nelson, and the majority owner of Employer Direct Healthcare.
The attendance for the games at the AAF have been solid so far, reaching 29k this past week for one game. The problem with start up leagues is the long term investment, but this 250 million dollars is huge for them.
I would expect the NFL to step up soon and work with the AAF.