Understanding Union Representation for Professional Football Players

Adam Richelieu, NFL Players Association and Mark Hyman, Director, Povich Center for Sports Journalism, at the University of Maryland

Mark Hyman, a veteran journalist, professor, author and lawyer, is Merrill College’s inaugural George Solomon Endowed Chair in Sports Journalism.  He directs the college’s Shirley Povich Center for Sports Journalism. Hyman joined the Povich Center in July 2020 after more than four decades as a sports journalist and seven years serving as a Professor of Sport Management at The George Washington University.  He has taught courses in Sport Law, Sport Media and Communication and Sport Globalization. Hyman’s sports journalism career includes stops at Businessweek, The Baltimore Sun and the Dallas Times Herald. He covered such stories as SMU football’s pay-for-play scandal that resulted in the NCAA “death penalty,” the death of UMD basketball great Len Bias and the construction of Oriole Park at Camden Yards.  Hyman is the author of three books exploring the adult-managed world of youth sports: “Concussions and Our Kids: America’s Leading Expert on How to Protect Young Athletes and Keep Sports Safe” (2012), a collaboration with Dr. Robert Cantu; “The Most Expensive Game in Town: The Rising Cost of Youth Sports and the Toll on Today’s Families” (2012) and “Until It Hurts: America’s Obsession with Youth Sports and How It Harms Our Kids” (2009).

Adam Richelieu works for the NFL Players Association as the Salary Cap & Contract Manager. In this role, he serves as the primary point of contact for NFL agents and players alike on all matters pertaining to NFL player contract negotiations. During his 5 year tenure at the NFL Players Association, Richelieu has leveraged his expertise in both predictive analytics and negotiating to assist in player contract negotiations worth a cumulative dollar value of more than $2 Billion. Richelieu was also involved in the research and negotiation process which led to the ratification of the new NFL-NFLPA Collective Bargaining Agreement extending through 2030. For his work, Richelieu was named as a member of the 2020 Forbes 30 Under 30 List in the Sports Category. Prior to working at the NFLPA, Richelieu worked for the Washington Football Team and Auburn University Athletics. Richelieu’s educational background includes graduate studies at The George Washington University and Northwestern University and undergraduate studies at Auburn University.