$100,000 fine caps silly feud
Urlacher penalized as sports drink firm, NFL square off
April 19, 2007
Chicago Tribune
For three minutes at the beginning of Super Bowl media day at Dolphin Stadium in Miami, Brian Urlacher answered questions before anybody noticed the black hat on his head and a bottle on the podium.
Both items carried the logo for a sports drink company Urlacher has invested in and endorses.
At that point, a Bears public relations spokesman approached Urlacher and quietly reminded him of the NFL's policy against wearing gear that advertises any product except designated league sponsors at league events. Gatorade pays the NFL about $45 million per year to be its exclusive drink of choice.
According to an NFL official's review of a video clip of the event, Urlacher complied with the request by immediately removing the hat and asking, "You guys having a fit?"
The answer finally became public Wednesday when a New York public relations firm for the beverage company issued a release confirming the NFL had fined Urlacher $100,000 a month ago for wearing the hat during the marquee event of Super Bowl week. It was the largest non-suspension fine in league history.
"I find it ridiculous that the NFL would fine me $100,000," Urlacher said in a statement.
He did not return phone calls, and a company spokesman said he was traveling.
Urlacher can appeal the fine, but representatives from the company said they expected Urlacher to pay it, an excessive amount for a minuscule offense but easily worth every penny for the exposure it generated for his product.
The unprecedented nature of the punishment and Urlacher's status as a premier NFL pitchman guaranteed national media attention and widespread mention of the drink's brand in most media outlets.
But, sorry, not this one.
The announcement of the discipline came across to many as a thinly veiled exercise in commercialism when the company's seven-sentence press release of Urlacher's fine included the brand name eight times.
The quote obtained from Urlacher to gauge his reaction began with the linebacker explaining he consumes the product "because it helps me play at my best." The release concluded by blaming the league for fining Urlacher for preferring the sports drink, again named, to Gatorade.
In other words, the NFL wasn't the only organization coming on as subtly as a sledgehammer in all this.
The total amounts to $33,333 for each minute Urlacher wore the hat and a much stiffer penalty than if he had made helmet-to-helmet contact with Peyton Manning during the game. When Urlacher was fined for doing just that to the Bills' J.P. Losman in Week 5, in comparison, it cost him only a $5,000 fine— 1/20 of the latest amount.
That's like a traffic ticket costing as much as a mortgage payment. It left a lasting impression that the league protects its image even more fiercely than its quarterbacks.
Asked if it was taken into account that Urlacher had agreed to remove the hat three minutes into a 60-minute session, NFL director of corporate communications Brian McCarthy answered, "Nope. Too late."
In the NFL's mind, the damage had been done, and Urlacher's picture wearing the hat on a national Web site that night only confirmed it for them.
The league notified Urlacher of the fine in mid-March, a decision CNBC reporter Darren Rovell predicted in his blog from Jan. 31, a day after the event. Rovell reported the exchange at the podium between Urlacher and the Bears' PR official and noted how the NFL considers transgressions during Super Bowl week more serious than at any other time. Indeed, a failure to comply during the regular season brings a $10,000 fine, while during the Pro Bowl it increases to $50,000.
McCarthy explained that players from every team are made aware of the restrictions before each season with inserts into their playbooks and reminders on bulletin boards.
The level of the Super Bowl fine has been $100,000 since the mid-1990s, according to McCarthy, because of the growing international platform available for shrewd marketers. At the 2002 Super Bowl, New England Patriots offensive lineman and Nike endorser Mike Compton backed off his threat to hide the Reebok logo on his hat when reminded of the potential dent in his wallet. McCarthy's point: Players know the rules.
"We believe [urlacher] knew what he was doing," McCarthy said.
Stressing that Urlacher was fined for wearing the hat, not for drinking the beverage as the company alleged, McCarthy called the manner in which Wednesday's information was released a month after the decision "a classic attempt at ambush marketing."
League officials also could not have been happy that enforcing their policy, intended to limit attention paid its sponsors' competitors, in this case had the opposite effect because of an enterprising PR firm with transparent intentions.
"It certainly isn't a surprise to anyone that we need to protect the rights of our sponsors, and this was a clear attempt to get around that," McCarthy said.
Contrary to what conspiracy theorists might think, it was not an attempt to get back at Urlacher for taking a swipe at the league in November after its decision to suspend Ricky Manning Jr. for the Patriots game. In a fit of frustration, Urlacher said back then, "It stinks, man. … I don't know why they did it this week, but that's the NFL for you."
Wednesday, the league met its match in overkill.
I think the NFL is right on with this fine.
I think the NFL is right on with this fine.
from others. I would much rather hear someones opinion on something than have to read through bunch of sophomoric shots.
I think the NFL is right on with this fine. 1) He did this during the Super Bowl week (sponsers pay big $$ for time)2) Gatorade is the major sponser of the NFL not this water company3) The NFL needs its corporate sponsers .... the reason the NFL is what it is has a lot to do with the corporate sponsership.
I understand the apples/oranges argument, but IMO this is still loony.
