‘The Godfather’: Congress Compares Dan Snyder’s Washington Team to Mafia Movie
According to a letter written by the House Oversight Committee to the Federal Trade Commission on Tuesday, the Washington Commanders may have purposely withheld ticket revenue that was meant to be shared with the other 31 NFL teams and failed to refund up to $5 million in security deposits to fans.
"We are writing to share evidence of concerning business practices by the Washington Commanders uncovered during the Committee’s ongoing investigation into workplace misconduct at the team. Evidence obtained by the Committee, including emails, documents, and statements from former employees, indicate senior executives and the team’s owner, Daniel Snyder, may have engaged in a troubling, long-running, and potentially unlawful pattern of financial conduct that victimized thousands of team fans and the National Football League (NFL)."
If true, this could very well be the end of Dan Snyder as an NFL owner.
All of these allegations clearly point Snyder in a bad light, so much so that one Congressman suggested the allegations against Snyder read more like something out of 'The Godfather" than an NFL owner.
NFL teams must give 40 percent of their net home ticket sales to the league, to be distributed evenly among the other owners. Jason Friedman, former VP of sales and customer service for the Commanders, testified the team had "two sets of books, " one that underreported certain ticket revenue to be given to the league, and another that reported accurate figures.
The letter also claims the Commanders have retained nearly $5 million in security deposits for up to 2,000 fans since 2016. Since 1997 Washington has required fans to enter into multi-year leases for premium seats, making them pay a "one-time refundable security deposit of 25% of the price of the eats for one year," according to the letter.
Snyder purchased the team in 1999, and shortly thereafter, executives directed employees to "establish roadblocks" to prevent customers from getting their deposits back, the letter stated.
There is no shortage of scandals surrounding the team and Snyder, who was fined $10 million by the league last year for fostering a hostile work environment. But these latest accusations involve taking money from the other 31 owners, and could lead to him being forced to sell the team.
"While the focus of our investigation remains the Commanders’ toxic work environment, I hope the FTC will review this troubling financial conduct and determine whether further action is necessary," said Oversight Chair Carolyn Maloney in a press release out Tuesday.
