Washington Commanders Deny Wrongdoing Following Financial Impropriety Allegations

The Washington Commanders Monday denied claims of financial wrongdoing following a former employee’s allegations in a letter to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and, in doing so, laid out the case for no government investigation.

In addition to the 22-page letter, there were 83 pages of signed affidavits, emails and texts. The team called the claims “baseless” as well as “false and reckless” and “pure speculation.”

The letter went on to deny the allegations made by former team employee Jason Friedman which allege the team engaged in unscrupulous practices, impacting consumers as well as the NFL, to benefit financially. The allegations include keeping two sets of financial records, among other things.

“I can state unequivocally that I never helped maintain, or saw anyone else maintain, a ‘second set’ of books,” Paul Szczenski, former director of finance for the team for more than eight years, said in a signed affidavit.

Prior to his October 2020 firing, Friedman spent 24 years in Washington’s ticket department as VP, Sales and Customer Service. His allegations led to a 20-page letter detailing shady revenue practices that led to more profits. On March 14, he met with the FTC as part of its investigation into the team’s workplace culture.

“Quite frankly, as you go through the allegations it reads like a description of some organization out of The Godfather and not an NFL football team,” Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Illinois) said at the time.