HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT) — The Alabama Beavers general manager was served a letter terminating the team from the International Football Alliance Monday, claiming the general manager and team engaged in fraud, deceit, and misconduct. However, a player and the GM say that the claims in the letter are false.
On Monday, News 19 obtained a letter from the International Football Alliance Director of Operations Jason Adams, sent to Alabama Beavers ownership and General Manager Charles “CJ” Drinkard, letting them know the franchise was formally terminated from the league.
“This decision was reached after a thorough internal review and factual findings made by the IFA staff and compliance officer over the past week; and is based on multiple violations of league standards, policies, and the professional code of conduct expected of all IFA member organizations,” IFA said in the letter.
The IFA claims in the letter terminating the Beavers that Drinkard and the team were engaged in fraudulent financial activity, misrepresentation and deceit, unfulfilled financial obligations, sponsorship misconduct and failure to meet and uphold league ethical requirements.
The IFA said Drinkard accepted a $25,000 investment via cashier’s check from Anthony Richardson under the pretense he was investing in the Alabama Beavers ownership, in which the funds were to be put toward league entry fees.
“On January 4, 2024, Mr. Drinkard presented Mr. Richardson with a fraudulent PayPal statement showing he paid the league on a line item payout under the fictional name of “International Alliance”. This is a felony act transaction. This item and document are fraudulent and the league never received this payment as Mr. Richardson is aware. Mr. Richardson has provided all documentation to our league officers and ownership group for verification, which has been fact-checked and verified. The IFA league and Mr. Richardson will now take legal action in these findings against Mr. Drinkard in the State of Alabama.
When questioned about the payment, Charles “CJ” Drinkard stated to league staff on a phone call that funds were returned to the investor, when in fact they were not. Providing the league with a false statement on the character of the investor in question. Referring to the funds as “dirty money” and claiming they were returned. In truth, Charles “CJ” Drinkard cashed the cashier’s check and kept the money for personal use and gain. Mr. Drinkard has not called, or texted, Mr. Richadson since this accepting this cashier’s check and only showed Mr. Richardson a fraudulent paid the league line item.
IFA letter of termination to Alabama Beavers
The IFA also said Drinkard provided “false statements” to league staff and local businesses on “multiple occasions” regarding payment of expenses during the team’s mini-camp operations, hotel accommodations and food services through Embassy Suites.
“While an initial deposit of $500.00 was received, no further payments were made toward the total owed. As confirmed by the Director of Sales and Marketing for Embassy Suites Huntsville, in a full email chain received by IFA for verification of your actions between said parties. The remaining balance, $22,731.72, remains outstanding. A payment schedule was arranged, but a further lack of action has proven there’s no solution or follow-up with payments made. The following payment dates have already passed and no payment was made: March 7 -$5682.93, March 28 -$5682.93 and April 4 – $5682.93,” the IFA said.
The termination of league membership and cease and desist notification letter also says that players who paid out-of-pocket for team-related hotel accommodations were not reimbursed, despite promises from Drinkard and team management. It also says the team collected funds from players and fans during a jersey flash sale, but products or refunds have not been provided.
The IFA claims Drinkard pushed the blame for the lack of delivery of products to third parties, stating that Drinkard said logos and sponsorships had to be added to the products before they could be shipped out. The IFA said these claims by Drinkard were “excuses used to hide the fraudulent/ misleading/ deceitful action.”
Amid more claims from the IFA about Drinkard and the team’s misuse and mismanagement of team funds, the league said the team failed to meet and uphold league ethical requirements, such as, “misleading the City of Huntsville, AL businesses with ‘multiple ways of deceit,’ and misleading them with ‘half-truths, coverups and blatant lies.’”
The end of the letter instructs Drinkard to cease and desist from representing himself or the organization as affiliated with the IFA in any form, using the IFA logo, name, or brand and more.
“Failure to comply with this cease and desist order will result in legal action, including but not limited to claims for damages, injunctive relief, and reputational harm. A court motion will be filed in Mobile County, State of Alabama. This is in accordance with the last known physical address on file and used,” the IFA said.
After hearing these allegations against the Beavers and their GM, News 19 reached out to Drinkard and the team for a statement. The Beavers GM told News 19 he was shocked about the allegations the IFA made against him and said the team left the league a few days before the letter was sent.
“We decided to leave the IFA on the [April] 10th to start our own league with other teams to better benefit the players and fans,” Drinkard said. “The league tried to ‘remove’ us when that simply is not true.”
He claims that the IFA was sending this out because they were upset that the Beavers decided to leave the league alongside a few other teams.
After talking to News 19, the Alabama Beavers posted the following statement to social media:
Our organization has proven to be a great deal for the players, fans, and all involved! We decided to leave the IFA on April 10, 2025, due to a lot of broken promises and leadership concerns. A formal email was sent to the league on that day explaining why we were making this decision to leave. We walked away willingly. Their rebuttal was sent on April 14, 2025. They refused to communicate when we wanted to negotiate better terms for the teams, and players involved. We do not feel as if they put the players first in many situations. Our organization has helped players get into the CFL and UFL. We do not feel as if they share that same vision.
We feel like our new league has better benefits for the fans, players, and all involved. We are disappointed that the IFA is wanting to make the separation a mudslinging contest when it should not be. We parted ways respectively. Their way of attacking teams is to spread rumors and we are just above that. This same tactic was used when previous teams parted ways. It is their way of trying to remain in a position of power.
The IFA is trying to entice our organization into bashing them when we do not want to take any part in that. We run a respectable organization, and we are going to make sure we move forward with our new scheduled teams and new league ownership.
Our scheduled home dates will remain the same as well. Nothing will change on our end regarding the season. We look forward to continuing to strengthen the community through sports!
Alabama Beavers Ownership
News 19 also reached out to an Alabama Beavers player to see if they could shed light on the claims made against the GM.
When asked if they could confirm or deny the IFA claim that players were not reimbursed for out-of-pocket team-related hotel accommodations, the player told News 19 that, to their recollection, these statements are not true.
“Since I have been a part of the Beavers organization. They have treated us with respect, communicated effectively and they have done everything they said they would,” the player said.
Regarding the jersey flash sale claim that refunds or products have not been received, the player told News 19 that two things can be true: The team has sold fan jerseys and that most of their friends and family who purchased items received them. “For instance, my neighbor received his fan jersey in [December] after waiting for a month,” they said.
The player then said that while their friends and family received their products, they had been told other people were not as lucky.
“I have been told by other players that their fan jerseys haven’t been delivered. However, to my knowledge, it’s because the jerseys were getting new sponsorship pins/stickers on their jerseys, which caused a delay,” they said. “Fans have to understand that this is a new league and a lot of parties have interest. Believe the demand caused the jerseys to be delayed, but to the refund question, I am not sure.”
When asked about the claim from the Beavers about leaving the league before this termination letter came out, the player told News 19 that they were notified a week ago that they were planning to leave the league and part ways with the commissioner.
Regarding the character of Drinkard, the player provided News 19 with the following statement:
“Well, let me say this, CJ Drinkard has done so much for us in the past year or so. He has communicated effectively, he has given us more than expected, as far as opportunities for bigger leagues, visibility, and resources we need in order to grow as a player. I’ll say this, new leagues are always doubtful because so many have failed. But I’m optimistic in the league and CJ Drinkard because I have seen first hand what he has done for the IFA, the Alabama Beavers, and myself and other players.”
The Beavers told News 19 that, “a lot of [the IFA’s] claims are not true. This is simply a ploy to discredit our team when we simply wanted better league structure for our fans, players, and everyone involved!”
News 19 obtained federal court records in which another former IFA team, the Baltimore Lightning, filed a lawsuit against the league in February claiming Adams “devised a scheme to receive funds from potential franchise owners… across the United States and Mexico.”
The lawsuit said Adams received tens of thousands of dollars from the Baltimore Lightning and others:
- Over $60,000 from individuals in Mexico
- Over $25,000 from individuals in Las Vegas, NM
- Over $6,000 from individuals in Toledo, OH
- Over $20,000 from individuals in Portland, OR
- Over $40,000 from individuals in Huntsville, AL
- Over $20,000 from individuals in Tampa, FL
The Lightning claimed Adams published a defamatory online statement on Facebook and Instagram, saying this team operated “unprofessionally” and not to the standards of the league, causing the team to lose over $550,000 in investments and funding.
The statement the team is referring to was posted by the IFA on January 6:
After a thorough review and multiple opportunities to address concerns, the IFA has made the decision to remove the Baltimore Lightning from the league effective immediately. The team was voted unanimously to be removed by all team owners within the IFA. This decision was made due to the organization’s consistent failure to meet professional internal operational standards, failure to adhere to league requirements, and failure to uphold the standards expected for employee treatment and organizational conduct.
IFA, Facebook
The Lightning released a statement the same day saying they joined the IFA because of things that were promised, such as a media deal with AF1 and CBS Sports. The team said Adams carried on with this alleged promise, but the team already confirmed with CBS Sports that there was no such deal.
You can read the full departure statement released by the Baltimore Lightning on Facebook here.
As of April 15, the Alabama Beavers are still scheduled to play their first game against the Tampa Bay Tornadoes on May 31 at Joe Davis Stadium.
News 19 has reached out to the Beavers to learn which new league they have joined.
The post IFA claims Alabama Beavers engaged in misconduct leading to termination, GM denies allegations appeared first on WHNT.
