Nucci hoping Storm is a business success as well

As you all know, the Arena Football League knows how to put on a show. So it shouldn't have come as a surprise that yesterday's press conference introducing new owner Robert Nucci was an extravagant affair, complete with about 100 people, a head table that included league commissioner David Baker, and personalized video taped welcomes from folks like Mike Ditka and Ron Jaworski. There were a few slip-ups - on one occasion, the emcee accidentally referred to the Storm as the Buccaneers; on another, Jaworski's name was mis-spelled "Jawarski" on his video-taped welcome - but all in all it had the feel of a big-time event.

That said, the AFL has never struggled when it comes to style. It's the substance that is often the question-mark. Even at a time when the league claims franchise values are sky-rocketing and fan interest is higher than ever, most teams are still losing money and, in some cases, folding (this offseason, the Nashville Kats shut down operations while the Austin Wranglers dropped down to af2).

Enter Nucci.

The Storm has never made an impact as a viable business. In the past, former majority owner Woody Kern has estimated his losses at between $400,000 and $700,000 a season. The Storm's playoff loss to Columbus at the St. Pete Times Forum last season was its least attended game of season, at just over 10,000 people.

But Nucci seems to think he can change that. After his press conference, he told me he hasn't decided how, exactly, he is going to market the team. In the past, Kern hasn't had any involvement in that area, leaving it instead to Palace Sports and Entertainment, with whom the Storm has a marketing and lease agreement. But in a new contract signed with Palace, Nucci could be rewarded for marketing on his own. Coach/GM Tim Marcum told me after the press conference that he thinks Nucci will integrate some of the marketing for the Storm with his medical practice, the Nucci Spine Center. At the press conference, the head table was flanked by banners for the Nucci Spine Center.

How much money Nucci is willing to pour into the team remains to be seen. He obviously displayed enough financial stability to be approved unanimously by the league. His claimed in a court document last year that his net worth was around $10.1 million, but his wife's lawyer (They are going through a divorce), claims is almost three times that amount.

Regardless, it will be interesting to see how a more hands-on owner affects the team.

Storm sale to be announced next Thursday

After years of trying, Woody Kern has finally found a buyer for the Tampa Bay Storm. In a deal that will be announced at a press conference Thursday, the Texas businessman has agreed to sell the team, apparently to Tampa surgeon Dr. Robert Nucci.

Larry Carr, whose Tampa-based firm has handled the sale, confirmed Friday evening that a deal is “in the mix,” but declined to comment further, citing a confidentiality agreement.

“We’re under strict orders from both people not to say anything,” Carr said.

The Storm had hoped to keep the deal quiet until Thursday, when Kern, Nucci and Arena Football League commissioner David Baker are all expected to be in town for a press conference at the St. Pete Times Forum.

Though Nucci will own a controlling stake in the team, there is a chance Kern will maintain a minority stake.

Kern had been asking $20 million for the franchise. The exact sell price is believed to be $18.9 million, which would be an AFL record for an existing franchise. Nucci could not be reached for comment. An employee at his office said he is on vacation and will not be in town until next week.

Kern bought the franchise in 1994 for a reported $850,000, but has racked up significant losses in the 13 seasons he has owned the team. In May, he told the Times that if he sold the team for his asking price, he’d turn a slight profit, despite losses he estimated at between $400,000 and $700,000 a year.

In 2002, Kern reached a deal to sell the Storm for $12.3-million to Michigan businessman Thom Hopper, but it quickly fell apart. The franchise announced the sale at a news conference, but after paying the first $1 million, Hopper failed to deliver the rest of the money. Kern retained ownership. Hopper is now an inmate at a medium-security federal penitentiary in South Carolina, serving a 33-1/2-month prison sentence on an unrelated wire fraud charge.

--DAVID MURPHY, Times Staff Writer

dmurphy@sptimes.com