By: Thales Andrade Pereira
Since the Bucks’ playoff series win 18 year drought is over, there is nothing better to discuss than their economic impact in their host city, Milwaukee. Although Giannis Antetokounmpo & Company ended up losing to Drake’s Toronto Raptors in the Eastern Conference Finals, it was the first time since the 2000-2001 season that the Bucks have won a playoff series. Everything, from local restaurants downtown to hotels have been hauling in more revenue than ever. "This is one of those great, great times for Milwaukee, for Wisconsin and certainly, for the Bucks." said Bucks’ President Peter Feigin.
According to Lindsey McKee from Visit Milwaukee, the estimated dollar value impact of every home game of the 2018-2019 season was $3 million. That is not $3 million straight to the Fiserv Forum, but $3 million spread to the wide variety of businesses in town. The beloved Greg Marcus, famous for owning the Marcus Theaters and Hotels, testimonied saying that the success of the Milwaukee Bucks has put Milwaukee’s name across newspapers of the world, and therefore spreading a good word on Milwaukee’s hospitality and ultimately bringing in more fans. Another witness of the economic boom of Milwaukee is the General Manager of The Iron Horse Hotel, Brian Fahey. The Hotel is directly next to the Bucks Mural, which is considered a must visit for real Bucks fans. Fahey mentioned that an army of fans come by to visit the mural prior to the game, and a good number of the platoons end up stopping by and having a drink in the lobby.
Although it did not end up coming to reality, the estimated economic impact of the NBA finals hosted in Milwaukee would have been $11.3 millions dollars. While the players on the court do not play with boosting the city’s economy on their mind, keeping that number in mind would be efficient for Peter Feign. With the Bucks playing around 10 games more that usual per season, and hauling in a calculated $30 million more than any past season within 18 years, Milwaukee’s rise from one of the nation’s lowest GDP per capita in a metropolitan area is likely. While underlooked, the Milwaukee Bucks economic impact, may not be the highest in the country, but the most valuable due to the uprising of its host city together with the team’s success.
Works Cited
Bizjournals.com, www.bizjournals.com/milwaukee/news/2019/04/12/sports-tourism-had-economic-impact-of-28m-on.html.“'They're Coming from All over:' Bucks' Success Brings Big Business to Milwaukee Hotels.” FOX6Now.Com, 22 May 2019, fox6now.com/2019/05/22/theyre-coming-from-all-over-bucks-success-brings-big-business-to-milwaukee-hotels/.
“Bucks' NBA Playoff Run Could Bring Big Boost to Milwaukee's Economy.” FOX6Now.Com, 10 May 2019, fox6now.com/2019/05/09/bucks-nba-playoff-run-could-bring-big-boost-to-milwaukees-economy/.
Wagner, Andrew. “Giannis Antetokounmpo Has Made The Small-Market Milwaukee Bucks An International Brand.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 1 Apr. 2019, www.forbes.com/sites/andrewwagner/2019/03/31/giannis-antetokounmpo-has-made-the-small-market-milwaukee-bucks-an-international-brand/#55867378c3ed.
I can totally see how such a big even such as the NBA playoffs can affect the economy of not only the cities that the teams are in but also the entire United States economy. I'd be extremely interesting to see which teams make the biggest economic impact on the country during this time. You could probably assume that the Warriors would be atop of the rankings along with the Raptors. But what do those small market teams do for the United States economy, the Bucks this year have been phenomenal and would make a way bigger impact than 10 years ago. But how much could the Bucks actually produce in revenue for the economy. The real GDP per capita now is much higher due to the economic impact of the Bucks. And it's a beautiful thing to watch unfold.
ReplyDeleteI completely see how the Bucks affect the Milwaukee economy with the new arena, the Fiserv Forum, and even a new and winning team led by the MVP, Giannis Antetokounmpo. The one thing that would be interesting though would be how each team affects big industries. For example, Kohls. They sell all types of clothing items for professional sports team depending on where you live. From a business point of view they would want the team with the largest following to win so they come in Kohl’s and buy the championship T-shirt, but when the Raptors won the finals, they made no money at all because they don’t have any stores in Canada. It would be really interesting to see how other companies would be affected.
ReplyDeleteIt’s crazy to think about all of the money that professional sports teams bring into a city. The amount of economic growth that a city can have in such a short period of time like the NBA playoffs is crazy. Most people don’t even think about the money going into the hotels, restaurants, city parking structures, etc. I work in retail and I could really see the effects of the bucks success. The amount of Bucks merchandise being sold in our store during the playoffs was through the rough. We would constantly have people coming in asking for Bucks merchandise. So not only is the city directly being affected but the suburbs around it are also on an economic rise during this time.
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