The NFLPA and the NFL have agreed on how to distribute the $620 million that was allocated to retired players through a legacy fund established by the new collective bargaining agreement.
Players will receive these pension increases for their lifetime, as will their eligible beneficiaries.
“For the first time in history the teams are contributing to the pensions of our former players. And the players of the National Football League, recognizing that they have an obligation to [the retired] players, created the Legacy Fund, [something] that we committed to getting done during the first six months that I took this job,” said DeMaurice Smith, executive director of the NFLPA, on the day the lockout ended.
Current benefit payments to retirees and their beneficiaries/former family members will immediately be increased to no less than $600 per month. That minimum $600 will apply for players not yet receiving pension payments, based on electing a life annuity or joint and survivor benefit.
A benefit credit will be added to players’ current monthly pension checks. If a player is over 55 and already receiving his pension, he will receive an additional $124 per season for seasons before 1975, and $108 per season for seasons from 1975-1992.
The fund will be paid 51 percent by the NFL, outside of the cap, and 49 percent out of the players’ revenue share.
