Ovitz Drops Carson NFL Bid, Puts Focus on Coliseum

CHARLOTTE, N.C. —  Hollywood agent Michael Ovitz said Wednesday that he and his partners will drop their bid to win a National Football League franchise for Carson and shift their attention to the New Coliseum project, which the NFL would like to see expanded to include a new stadium for the Dodgers.

“If it’s the Coliseum--great,” said Ovitz. “The Dodger situation sounds like a great opportunity for the city, and that didn’t exist a month ago. This changes things, and if this helps bring football back to Los Angeles, that has been our goal from the outset.”

The NFL, which will send 11 owners representing its expansion committee to Los Angeles next week to confirm its choice of the Coliseum as the potential franchise site, welcomed Ovitz’s decision, while sounding a warning about real estate developer Ed Roski’s agreement with the Coliseum Commission giving him exclusive rights to bid for a pro football franchise there.

Calling the agreement a potential “deal-breaker,” Jerry Richardson, owner of the Carolina Panthers and chairman of the NFL’s expansion committee, said the league wants Roski’s arrangement terminated by the time the owners arrive for their visit next week.

“We’ve been told it’s something that can be resolved,” Richardson said. “It has not been so far, and it needs to be by next Tuesday when we arrive.”

Roski’s deal with the Coliseum Commission calls for him to recoup up to $5 million in expenses if the commission strikes an NFL deal that does not include him. Richardson said that without total control of the franchise owners’ selection, he cannot assemble the 24 votes required to secure Los Angeles’ inclusion in the NFL.

Roski contends that he and his partner, financial services tycoon Eli Broad, are best suited to meet all the NFL’s requirements.

“I will discuss the situation with the Coliseum Commission [arrangement] with Eli,” Roski said. “The agreement still stands, but things could change in the next four or five days. The NFL said it will be discussed Tuesday when the owners arrive.”

Roski’s exclusive agreement would require his inclusion in any group of owners. The NFL, however, has made no secret of its desire to tap Ovitz’s leadership skills by giving him a role in a Los Angeles franchise.

“I think he would be a huge asset,” Richardson said. “People like his vision, his imagination and his understanding of how to present the NFL product.

“No one has done a better job of selling the value of the L.A. market than Michael Ovitz. He has a number of owners truly behind him.”

Momentum Shifts to Coliseum

Ovitz, while still contending Carson is a viable deal, said it is up to the 31 NFL owners to decide where a Los Angeles team will play football and that his group’s continued competition with the Coliseum would only undermine the divided Los Angeles situation, while drawing attention to Houston’s unified effort.

For that reason, others active in the campaign to secure a Los Angeles franchise welcomed Ovitz’s decision, which may result in his group competing with Roski and his partners for a franchise in the Coliseum. Ovitz said too much has happened in the past few days to seriously consider merging his effort with Broad and Roski. The three have met previously, but left without any kind of agreement.

Even so, said Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas, “I think what we see emerging is agreement in all quarters that football in the new Coliseum is the right thing for the city and the right thing for the NFL.” Ridley-Thomas has been the most consistent supporter of the Coliseum, which is in his district.

As recently as last fall, many observers still considered the Coliseum a longshot, given that it has hosted two failed football franchises, the Rams and Raiders, each of whom left the stadium for other cities.

Mayor Richard Riordan, whose friend Broad is leading the ownership group that has been trying to win a team for the Coliseum, declined to comment on the possibility of competing bids for a team. But Riordan expressed confidence that the city would meet the NFL’s Sept. 15 deadline for proving its readiness and willingness to host a team.

“I have a philosophy that if something should happen, it can be made to happen,” Riordan said. “This should happen. Los Angeles is the biggest entertainment market in the world. I’m optimistic that we will have a team here.”

A few years ago Ovitz approached the NFL about trying to do a football deal at the Coliseum, but was advised to search elsewhere for a site, which eventually led him to Carson. Now, he acknowledges the focus of interest has shifted back to Exposition Park.

“This Dodger thing has [the league] all excited and I’m not going to stand in the way of that,” he said. “The NFL clearly wants more than just a stand-alone stadium. That’s why the mall-stadium idea was attractive in Carson, and why New England owner Bob Kraft is doing a similar project in Connecticut.

“I like the idea of heavy infrastructure where people can congregate in a good environment. It sounds exciting, and while I haven’t studied the Coliseum in four years and don’t have a clue if it will work, I’ll make it happen if given the choice.”

Ovitz Urged to Continue Quest

The NFL accepted Ovitz’s withdrawal, but immediately requested that he continue his ownership quest.

“Having Michael as a potential owner and involved in the process is good for Los Angeles’ overall effort,” said Roger Goodell, the NFL’s executive vice president for league and football development. “Michael’s goal has always been consistent to do what is in the best interest of the Los Angeles area so the NFL could return to his city.”

While many city leaders were happy to see Carson taken off the table as an option, some also expressed concern about the mounting pressure on Roski to give up his exclusive right to renovate the Coliseum. Members of the Coliseum Commission credit Roski with investing time and effort in football during a period when few others were interested in the idea.

Although the commission could strip Roski of his exclusivity arrangement, it either would require a unanimous vote--which today seems unlikely--or the board would have to agree to reimburse him for more than $3 million that he has put into the project. At least some commissioners are reluctant to do that because they fear political backlash.

Ridley-Thomas, however, stressed that he believes Roski needs to be treated fairly.

“There just simply will need to be some acknowledgment for what he has done,” the councilman said, adding that action needs to happen quickly. “We’re getting down to the wire here. Decisions need to be made.”