Richard RymanGreen Bay Press-Gazette
GREEN BAY – The Green Bay Packers are unique in the world of professional sports, and often the most misunderstood organization.
The Packers play in the smallest city in the National Football League and have nobillionaire owner. The team is a publicly owned,nonprofit corporation, but publicly owned does not mean publicly traded, and nonprofit corporation does not mean no profit.
Here's what to know about this unorthodox strategy.
How many shares, and shareholders, do the Packers have?
The organization has 539,029 shareholders owning 5,204,615 shares.Shareholders meet annually, usually in the third week in July. They are limited to 200,000 or fewer shares to ensure that no one person or entity can control the Packers. That equals just under 4% of total shares outstanding. The average is a little more than 9.6 shares each. The majority own one share. Shares can be transferred to family members.
The stock pays no dividends, doesn't appreciate in value and can't be traded. No season-ticket privileges are included, but like the owners of anypublicly owned company, shareholders get to vote during the annual meeting, mostly for directors. To be sure, the organization has little worry about losing a vote.
At the 2023 annual meeting, 1,609,720 shares were voted. The 2024 meeting is scheduled for 3 p.m. July 22 in the Lambeau Field bowl.
If the Packers don't have an owner, then who calls the shots?
Team President and CEO Mark Murphy, the functional equivalent of an owner, makes key decisions and gets his way on most issues.This is Murphy's last year as president and CEO. He will reach the organization's mandatory retirement age of 70 in July 2025.
Ed Policy, 53, the team's chief operating officer and general counsel, was elected to succeed Murphy. Policy will take over at the 2025 annual meeting.
In conjunction with Murphy, the Packers'seven-member executive committeeoversees the corporation.Executive committee members often are selected for their skills.
For example, Mike Simmer, retired CEO of BMO Harris Bank Green Bay, who was proposed to become lead director this year, is the team treasurer. John Bergstrom, when he was on the executive committee, was called on for his marketing skills.
All executive committee members were or are presidents, CEOs or in an equivalent position.
What does the rest of the Packers' board do?
The remainder of the team's 43-member board of directors make their presence felt through work on the committees they are assigned to.The number of directors varies, but is generally in the 42-to-45 range. Director candidates are vetted by a director affairs committee, approved by Murphy and elected by shareholders.
The full board of directors meets five times a year, including the annual meeting in July. The executive committee meets monthly, or more often if needed.
As a rule, executive committee members get more details on issues than the board as a whole, though members of various committees get more information on their particular responsibilities.
Can Policy make changes to the Packers' management structure?
Murphy is at the top of the management chain for the Packers, with Policy second in line, his primary responsibilities being on the business side. On the football side, Murphy decided in 2019, when Matt LaFleur was hired as coach, to make LaFleur, General Manager Brian Gutekunst and Director of Football Operations Russ Ball equals on the flow chart, all reporting directly to the CEO. Previously, the general manager was over the other two and it was he who reported to Murphy.
Policy can structure the organization as he wants next year. He has not said what he will do.
Why did the Packers sell shares to their fans?
The Packers have had six stock sales in the team's history. The first 3-1/2 were to rescue the team's finances and the rest was applied to improvements to Lambeau Field. Stock sales were in 1923, 1935, 1950, 1997, 2011 and 2022.
The first three sales bailed the team out of dire financial straits, when it was on the verge of going out of business. The team was in good financial position in 1997, but President and CEO Bob Harlan warned that if Lambeau Field was not renovated into a modern, year-round facility, the Packers could well face a situation as bad as during the first three sales.
At the time of the 1997 sale, the Packers had 1,940 shareholders. The 539,000-plus shareholders now indicate the Packers' popularity with fans. The 1997 sale included a 1,000-1 stock split, changing maximum ownership from 200 shares to 200,000 shares.
The NFL approved Packers' stock sale requests, but prohibited the team from using the money for football. It had to be used for improvements for the fans, such as the south end zone addition, new video scoreboards, improved concourses and the like. The sales in 2011 and 2022 were used for those stadium improvements.
Contact Richard Ryman atrryman@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at@RichRymanPG,on Instagram at@rrymanPGor on Facebook atwww.facebook.com/RichardRymanPG
