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The University of Louisiana at Lafayette is owed more than $30,000 from a now-defunct Arena Football League team that was supposed to use its on-campus facility.
The Lafayette Travel Board of Directors agreed to provide a $20,000 subsidy to the AFL’s Louisiana Voodoo to help the team rent Blackham Coliseum. However, previous AFL commissioner Lee Hutton has failed to pay the remaining balance of the bill, and the team has since folded.
According to emails the Illuminator obtained from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, a $20,000 portion of the AFL’s bill was to be invoiced to Ben Berthelot, chairman and CEO of Lafayette Travel, to help the Voodoo pay rent at Blackham.
Records show Hutton has failed to pay the remaining balance of the bill, which is more than $30,000. ULL sent Hutton a letter demanding a 50% payment by May 9, or the AFL would be barred from access to Blackham Coliseum. Voodoo Coach James Shiver told the Illuminator that AFL deputy commissioner Travelle Gaines paid $5,000 before the team’s first and only game April 27. Gaines has since resigned.
The insurance certificate the AFL provided to the university lists the Minnesota Myth, another AFL team, as the insured party. The Myth has since disbanded, citing a lack of funding.
The team’s financial problems are the latest in a series of setbacks for the AFL. The team’s next home game was scheduled for May 25, but a May 14 AFL press release did not include the Louisiana Voodoo among the teams retained in a new restructuring that included the ouster Hutton as commissioner. He was replaced with interim commissioner Jeff Fisher.
ULL also stated that if payment was not received, the AFL’s unpaid balance would be sent to Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill for collection.
The Voodoo began this season in the new iteration of the AFL with residency originally set for Lake Charles before abruptly heading to Lafayette, citing difficulties with ASM, the Lake Charles Event Center’s management company.
In a public statement, ASM attorney Gene Thibodeaux claimed that the AFL “did not pay their rent, nor did they provide a certificate of insurance as outlined in the executed contract, leading to the contract’s termination.”
Correction: This story was updated to accurately reflect the amount of money AFL deputy commissioner Travelle Gaines paid to the university.
by Natalie McLendon, Louisiana Illuminator
May 20, 2024
by Natalie McLendon, Louisiana Illuminator
May 20, 2024
The University of Louisiana at Lafayette is owed more than $30,000 from a now-defunct Arena Football League team that was supposed to use its on-campus facility.
The Lafayette Travel Board of Directors agreed to provide a $20,000 subsidy to the AFL’s Louisiana Voodoo to help the team rent Blackham Coliseum. However, previous AFL commissioner Lee Hutton has failed to pay the remaining balance of the bill, and the team has since folded.
According to emails the Illuminator obtained from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, a $20,000 portion of the AFL’s bill was to be invoiced to Ben Berthelot, chairman and CEO of Lafayette Travel, to help the Voodoo pay rent at Blackham.
Records show Hutton has failed to pay the remaining balance of the bill, which is more than $30,000. ULL sent Hutton a letter demanding a 50% payment by May 9, or the AFL would be barred from access to Blackham Coliseum. Voodoo Coach James Shiver told the Illuminator that AFL deputy commissioner Travelle Gaines paid $5,000 before the team’s first and only game April 27. Gaines has since resigned.
The insurance certificate the AFL provided to the university lists the Minnesota Myth, another AFL team, as the insured party. The Myth has since disbanded, citing a lack of funding.
The team’s financial problems are the latest in a series of setbacks for the AFL. The team’s next home game was scheduled for May 25, but a May 14 AFL press release did not include the Louisiana Voodoo among the teams retained in a new restructuring that included the ouster Hutton as commissioner. He was replaced with interim commissioner Jeff Fisher.
ULL also stated that if payment was not received, the AFL’s unpaid balance would be sent to Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill for collection.
The Voodoo began this season in the new iteration of the AFL with residency originally set for Lake Charles before abruptly heading to Lafayette, citing difficulties with ASM, the Lake Charles Event Center’s management company.
In a public statement, ASM attorney Gene Thibodeaux claimed that the AFL “did not pay their rent, nor did they provide a certificate of insurance as outlined in the executed contract, leading to the contract’s termination.”
Correction: This story was updated to accurately reflect the amount of money AFL deputy commissioner Travelle Gaines paid to the university.
Louisiana Illuminator is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Louisiana Illuminator maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Greg LaRose for questions: info@lailluminator.com. Follow Louisiana Illuminator on Facebook and Twitter.
Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our website. AP and Getty images may not be republished. Please see our republishing guidelines for use of any other photos and graphics.
Natalie covers public meetings and environmental news for Southwest Louisiana Journal and Southerly. She is a sociology graduate of McNeese State University.
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The Louisiana Illuminator is an independent, nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization with a mission to cast light on how decisions in Baton Rouge are made and how they affect the lives of everyday Louisianians. Our in-depth investigations and news stories, news briefs and commentary help residents make sense of how state policies help or hurt them and their neighbors statewide.
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Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our website.
© Louisiana Illuminator, 2024
