NLL Insider

National Lacrosse League (NLL) Commissioner Jim Jennings gave a quick State of the League address prior to last week’s Championship game. Here’s a breakdown from that conference where Jennings talked about you the fan, coverage, sponsorships, expansion and the players.

Attendance and Coverage

“I’d like to thank all of our fans for another season of outstanding support,” said Jennings. “Overall attendance once again averaged more than 10,000 fans per game and more than one million total fans for the entire season.”

This year’s NLL Champion’s Cup coverage had over 18,000 screaming fans in attendance, a national audience watching throughout North America, and worldwide coverage with internet and radio broadcasts.

The NLL Final was live on ESPN 360 in the US, live on The Score in Canada, and live in 50 countries around the world on Eurosport 2. You could have also caught the game worldwide with B2 Live TV or SIRIUS Satellite Radio.

“In addition to the traditional ways of watching the game, the league has embraced the digital age and has found innovative ways to deliver the games when they are televised,” said Jennings. “We will continue to enter into strategic partnerships with companies like YouTube to expose our sport to new fans.”

“Our fans were also treated to an unprecedented level of online coverage this year with the NLL Insider,” said Jennings during the conference. “Inside Lacrosse launched this website and it was a third party presentation. The coverage that the Insider provides is tremendous, and we look forward to more throughout the summer and the next two seasons.”

“As we look ahead to the future, we are excited about the league’s path for the 2009 season and beyond,” added Jennings. He noted their work is just beginning in what will be a busy off-season for the league.

Sponsorships

“The longest agreement in league history gives us the long-term labor peace that is needed as we aggressively pursue television and league sponsors for the next several seasons,” said Jennings of the new seven-year collective bargaining agreement (CBA) that was signed prior to the start of the 2008 season.

“The early returns on our new agreement have been very good. The league is now associated with corporate partners of nationally recognized brands… This list will only continue to grow and the stability that we have with our players is an important factor in the growth of our league.”

Jennings also noted that the new CBA ties in the league’s three major revenue streams of national television, sponsorships and expansion. “Those are our three major sources of income and they are all tied to our collective bargaining agreement,” said Jennings.

Expansion

“The league is also considering expansion in the 2009-2010 season, especially in Canada. We’re focused right now on building our brand in Canada through cities like Winnipeg, Halifax and Vancouver. Those are three cities that are top on our list for expansion.“

“In addition to looking at expansion in Canada, we’re also looking at expansion in the United States in various cities. We expect to know the status of potential new franchises for these cities within the next year or two,” said Jennings.

“Our deadline (for expansion applications) is June 1. We currently have applications pending in Vancouver and Halifax. I don’t anticipate any more applications coming in. We are very selective on who we bring into the league now. Those applications will be put forth, and we’ll see what the Board says. We’ll probably make those decisions for next year somewhere around mid-June or so.”

“I hate to say it’s by design but it was,” stated Jennings of San Jose’s low attendance figures this season. “We got new owners in there right before the season started… They made a conscious decision to ride out the season and build for the future. I’d consider it a lame duck season as far as marketing went… We anticipate San Jose being in our league a long-time. They’re great owners, deep pocketed owners, and they’re very passionate about our game in San Jose… I just saw their five-year plan and it’s pretty impressive.”

After talking about league coverage, sponsorships and expansion, Jennings concluded by stating the National Lacrosse League (NLL) offers some of the world’s very best lacrosse.

Ballers

“We are excited about the increase of US-born players who are now playing in our league. More and more of the top US players are putting in the time and dedication needed to convert their skills from field lacrosse to box lacrosse,” said Jennings. He noted how New York’s roster, which had the highest American content of any NLL team this season, came within one game of reaching the televised final.

“US players who make it to the National Lacrosse League are not only the best players from their country, but they are also the toughest,” said Jennings. “It takes a combination of skill and toughness to become the best of the best which is what we have here in the NLL. Combined with our Canadian players, we feel that we have the best players in the world.”

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