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Lloyd Howell Jr., the former executive director of the NFL's Players Association, resigned from his position on Thursday following an investigation around Howell charging the union for visits to strip clubs, per ESPN.
Union-approved expense reports and receipts showed that Howell expensed two visits to strip clubs and an expensive car service to one of the clubs.
Howell, who was elected union president in 2024 and was paid $3.6 million last year, also had a history of strip club-related expense reports with his prior employer, Booz Allen, according to ESPN.
Here's what to know about the situation regarding Howell and why he resigned.
Lloyd Howell Jr. strip club controversy, explained
ESPN's Don Van Natta Jr. and Kalyn Kahler reported Friday that Howell, the executive director of the NFL Players Association, abruptly stepped down from his role on Thursday night following results from an outside investigator hired by the union.
Union-approved expense reports and receipts obtained from the investigation showed that Howell had previously charged the union for two visits to strip clubs, plus a car service worth nearly $739 that took him from an airport to one of the strip clubs, per ESPN.
The receipt from the car service reportedly indicated that Howell was picked up from Fort Lauderdale International Airport in November 2023, was driven to Miami strip club Tootsie's Cabaret, and was taken back to his luxury condominium around 6 a.m. A finance worker for the union later noticed the expensive trip and flagged the receipt for higher-level review, and union lawyers also reviewed the receipts.
Per ESPN, Howell also visited a strip club in Atlanta in February 2025 with two other union employees during the NFLPA's summit, based on expense reports submitted by one of the other employees. Howell and the employees reportedly went to the Magic City strip club and "incurred $2,426 in charges, including cash withdrawals, ranging from $200 to $525, from a club ATM, sources and documents show."
That expense report, which ESPN reported that Howell instructed another employee to file, listed the purpose of the strip club outing as "Player Engagement Event to support & grow our Union." No players were named on the receipts or reports.
Lawyer Ronald C. Machen was hired by a "special committee of players," per ESPN, to investigate Howell's activities.
While there are not any specific exclusions in venues for the NFLPA's "entertainment" category when it comes to expenses and reimbursements, a former union employee told ESPN that "I don't think anyone in their right mind would think that is an optically good scenario," regarding Howell, and "clearly that aspect of the policy should be revisited."
This is also not the first time that Howell, 59, has been the subject of a strip club controversy with company expenses. Per ESPN, Howell accompanied a senior vice president with Booz Allen, his prior employer, in 2015 to a Manhattan strip club. The senior vice president submitted an expense report for that outing, and it led to him being fired and Howell also being "reprimanded."
At that time, Howell was a defendant in a sexual discrimination and retaliation lawsuit filed by a Booz Allen partner, a case which alleged Howell and the company "denied female employees leadership roles and excluded them from certain career opportunities provided to men." Later on, Booz Allen promoted Howell to chief financial officer.
Howell released a statement on his resignation from the NFLPA on Thursday:
"It's clear that my leadership has become a distraction to the important work the NFLPA advances every day. For this reason, I have informed the NFLPA Executive Committee that I am stepping down as Executive Director of the NFLPA and Chairman of the Board of NFL Players effective immediately," Howell's statement read, per ESPN. "I hope this will allow the NFLPA to maintain its focus on its player members ahead of the upcoming season."
Howell's decision to resign was one that was reportedly made on his own, and also surprised colleagues after they "repeatedly to persuade him not to leave the union" on Thursday night, according to ESPN.
Statement from Lloyd Howell Jr. pic.twitter.com/levOYblG2T
— NFLPA (@NFLPA) July 18, 2025Earlier in the week, reports also indicated that Howell has a part-time role with a private equity firm that had been approved to buy minority stakes in NFL teams.
Lloyd Howell already makes $3.6 million per year as NFL union boss.@PabloTorre found the NFLPA selectively edited video about Howell's private-equity side gig.@ProFootballTalk: "I long for the good old days when people actually gave a sh*t about conflicts of interest." pic.twitter.com/X1orwcHD8M
— Pablo Torre Finds Out (@pablofindsout) July 17, 2025ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Sunday that the NFLPA board is expected to vote on a new interim executive director to replace Howell before training camp opens for the 2025 season.
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