Policy discusses long-term adjustments Packers could make to stay financially competitive

Green Bay Packers president/CEO Ed Policy says adjustments may be necessary as the NFL’s only publicly owned franchise attempts to remain financially competitive in the long term.

“It’s like other teams have access to this ATM machine that we just don’t have right now,” Policy said Friday as the Packers released their annual expenses and revenues for the 2026 fiscal year, three days before the organization holds its annual shareholders meeting.

The Packers reported an operating loss for the first time in a non-pandemic year since the 1990 fiscal year, though the team’s overall net income was up 54.8%. The Packers had $132.5 million in net income due to the $133.6 million they received in nonoperating revenues, which included gains in corporate investments plus their share from ESPN’s purchase of NFL Network.

Each of the NFL’s 32 teams received $453.2 million from the NFL, which mainly comes from the league’s TV contracts.

In operating costs, the Packers reported $753 million in revenues and $754.1 million in expenses. Revenues were up 4.7%, but expenses increased 18.7%.

Policy said the rise in expenses was due to a $130 million increase in player costs. The Packers acquired All-Pro edge rusher Micah Parsons from the Dallas Cowboys last year and signed him to a four-year, $188 million contract with $136 million guaranteed. They also accelerated payments to some players who were traded.

“We’re going to have to be more aggressive with revenue generation going forward,” Policy said. “We all know the cost of competing in the NFL is going up, and other teams have access to capital sources that we just don’t have.”

Policy noted that the ability of other NFL franchises to sell minority interests in their team puts the Packers at a potential disadvantage in the long run.

“For example, a team can sell 5 to 10% of their equity without giving up any controlling interest in the team, and they could raise more money than we have in our capital reserve fund in just a matter of months,” Policy said.

Policy emphasized the Packers have no plans to sell naming rights to Lambeau Field, but they are willing to do that with their practice facility. The football field at Titletown – the development just west of Lambeau Field featuring offices, shops, restaurants and apartments – already has been renamed Emplify Health Field under a new sponsorship deal.

The Packers also are planning more events at Lambeau Field similar to the Luke Combs concerts that happened in May and the Notre Dame-Wisconsin football game that will take place Sept. 6.

“I feel very good about the Packers’ financial strength and condition in the medium term and the short term, certainly,” Policy said. “But we are keeping a very close eye on some of these long-term trends, looking at how they impact us and our financial health in the long term.

“We do have to make sure that we’re always in a position where we can continue to invest wisely in whatever it takes to field a championship-caliber team, whether that’s player costs, football staff or facilities.”

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FILE - Green Bay Packers president Ed Policy walks on the field before a NFL football game against the Detroit Lions on Sept. 7, 2025, in Green Bay, Wis. (AP Photo/Jeffrey Phelps, File)

DETROIT (AP) — Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer endorsed Rep. Haley Stevens in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate on Friday, in a race with Abdul El-Sayed that has become a focal point for the party's fight between its moderate establishment and progressive wings.

Whitmer remains popular in the battleground state, where she has twice won by substantial margins, and her endorsement gives Stevens a significant boost a day before early in-person voting begins. Whitmer also has history with El-Sayed, whom she defeated in the 2018 Democratic primary for governor.

“Haley's got what it takes to win," Whitmer said Friday in Detroit while appearing with Stevens and South Carolina Rep. Jim Clyburn. "If you're ready to show the rest of the country how Michigan gets the job done, vote for Haley Stevens.”

Stevens has pitched herself as a Democrat who has won tough elections, including flipping a Republican-held House seat. She has been backed by Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer and Michigan Sen. Gary Peters, a two-term Democrat who is retiring from the seat.

She's in a tight race for the Democratic nomination against El-Sayed, a progressive whose supporters include Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen.

“The corporate establishment has closed ranks and made their pick – now, Michigan voters will get to make theirs,” said Roxie Richner, a spokesperson for El-Sayed.

The winner of the Aug. 4 primary will face Republican former Rep. Mike Rogers in November for a critical, battleground Senate seat. Democrats are hoping to flip the Senate in November, and Michigan remains a key part of their plan.

Stevens is a four-term congresswoman from the Detroit area. Her candidacy has benefited from tens of millions in spending by outside political groups, including nearly $30 million from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, which supports pro-Israel candidates.

El-Sayed, who accuses Israel of committing genocide in Gaza, has criticized Stevens for taking money from AIPAC.

Whitmer is a two-term governor who isn’t on the ballot this fall, though she has been mentioned as a possible 2028 presidential candidate. She is the best-known politician in Michigan.

Whitmer had long weighed the decision. Stevens’ success winning in a competitive district, including converting the GOP-held seat for Democrats in 2018, was among the factors in the endorsement, according to a person who was familiar with the governor’s deliberations but was not authorized to discuss private conversations and spoke on condition of anonymity.

From left foreground, U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., Michigan Democratic U.S. Senate primary candidate Abdul El-Sayed, and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-VT. join hands together following a campaign rally, Saturday, July 18, 2026, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Jose Juarez)

FILE - Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer delivers the State of the State address at the Michigan state Capitol in Lansing, Mich., Feb. 25, 2026. (Devin Anderson-Torrez/Kalamazoo Gazette via AP, File)