After a 16-month hiatus, Antonio Brown plans to play football again, here is all you need to know about the ex NFL player and the Albany Empire along with its owner and worth
On Saturday, Antonio Brown intends to participate in his first football game in more than 16 months for the Albany Empire.
The former seven-time Pro Bowler initially claimed to be a co-owner of the National Arena League’s (NAL) Empire before retracting his statement and saying he has no ownership interest in the team. According to latest information, Charlotte and Steve von Schiller are in charge of the remaining 5% of Antonio El-Allah Express Trust Enterprise, which is owned by Antonio El-Allah to the tune of 95%.
Albany Empire owner, coach, record, how much does Antonio Brown own and his net worth in 2023
Brown has previously made hints that former MVP quarterback Cam Newton might come in some capacity, and on Thursday, he teased those hints.
When asked about Cam Newton suiting up for the @thealbanyempir, Empire owner Antonio Brown (@AB84) said Newton will "be here soon."
What do you think @CameronNewton? pic.twitter.com/irUHvDv1Kw
— Griffin Haas (@Griffin__Haas) May 25, 2023
Brown hinted that he will make a second NFL comeback in late April when he cropped a photo of himself wearing the No. 84 Baltimore Ravens jersey and posted on Twitter, “Excited to return to the NFL this year #RavensFlock.” No evidence has been shown to support the legitimacy of Brown’s tweet; he may have simply been making fun of his followers.
Some might wonder why Brown is so anxious to play in the NAL given that it provides substantially less competition than the NFL. The short answer is that his 75% ownership of the company has prompted him to make this decision as a result of the team’s disastrous 2023 season.
Here is what you need to know about Brown’s decision to play for Albany and the issues he’s brought on the Empire since becoming an owner in March.
What is the Albany Empire?
While Antonio Brown claims he owns 100% of the team, Kwarta said there’s been no change in ownership since Brown first joined the team. He and Brown each own 47.5 percent of the team, with the von Schillers owning the rest 5 percent.
Brown said he paid $1.5 million for workers’ compensation insurance so the team could practice in New York but Kwarta countered that, too. The Albany Empire, he said, has paid $774,042 for workers’ compensation insurance.
The Empire’s ownership situation has been the subject of rumors. WNYT’s Rodger Wyland mentioned a possible 80/20 split of the team, with Brown owning 80 percent, the day Menas’ departure was announced and Ryan Larkin, an associate of Brown’s, said that Brown did own 80 percent of the team in a deal that was finalized.
Pete Porcelli, an assistant coach for La Salle football and a former Albany Firebird, is the new Albany Empire head coach.
Currently playing in the National Arena League (NAL), the Albany Empire is an arena football team. The league, which was established in 2016, consists of seven clubs.
The Albany team joined the Arena League in 2020, and this is their third year of competition. Despite this, the Empire shared a name, logo, and colour palette with an Arena Football League team that played in 2018 and 2019 prior to the AFL’s dissolution. As a result, the brand has been around much longer.
The modern Empire franchies has been one of the NAL’s most successful franchises to date. They have won both of the most recent NAL championship games and are one of only two teams with several titles to their name. The other team is the Jacksonville Sharks.
Going into 2023, the Empire had a combined regular-season record of 15-5 and a perfect postseason record of 4-0. They haven’t fared as well in 2023, winning just one of their five games. That is at least partially because to the uproar that Antonio Brown’s association with the team caused.
Why is Antonio Brown playing for the Albany Empire? Brown’s father and net worth
Brown only plays for the Albany Empire for one reason. He is the main investor in the team and majority owner.
Brown originally joined the Empire’s ownership group in March 2023. He acquired 47.5 percent of the club from its principal owner Mike Kwarta, according to the Times Union, and then paid $1 for the remaining 47.5 percent of Kwarta’s 95 percent ownership stake in the company.
Your first look at Antonio Brown in an Albany Empire practice uniform. Brown has yet to participate in practice, which started at 9 AM. pic.twitter.com/rYorgc2hlW
— Griffin Haas (@Griffin__Haas) May 25, 2023
Brown acknowledged at an opening news conference that he had initially stated he wasn’t going to play for the team. He ultimately changed his mind around halfway through the season after a series of his choices caused the team to become disorganised.
Who is Antonio Brown’s father?
Another aspect of choosing to buy The Empire was the younger Brown’s association with the franchise. His father is “Touchdown” Eddie Brown.
The elder Brown was a well-known name in arena football. He played for the Albany Firebirds for six seasons between 1994 and 1999. During the 2000 season, he made one appearance for the squad before leaving due to a custody battle regarding his daughter.
After Antonio purchased a share in the team, Eddie was named vice president of operations. The two will continue to collaborate to run the company, but it seems that the younger Brown will have more influence on decisions given his financial stake in the team.
Antonio Brown net worth, career earnings
According to Celebrity Net Worth, Brown has a net worth of $20 million. That is mostly because of the money he earned while playing in the NFL and from certain endorsement deals he signed prior to the tumultuous end of his tenure with the Raiders and Patriots.
Brown made a total of $80.74 million while playing in the NFL, according to Spotrac.com. That is modest in comparison to some of the other top receivers in the NFL for two reasons. Brown was initially committed to his contracts before the NFL’s boom in receivers. He signed four-year, $68 million contracts with the Steelers in 2017 and a three-year, $50.13 million deal with the Raiders in 2019, just a few years before the $20 million per year price tag for receivers became the norm.