PJ Heimsch
I’m sure most people have heard of the new sports league surge that the XFL is making. The XFL offers a different range in entertainment, than its counterpart, the NFL. It allows you to watch the traditional game of football with the perks of listening to coaches and players reactions during live action via on field microphones. As well as allowing you to see some of your favorite college players that just didn’t make the cut for the NFL. I briefly watched the Tampa Bay Vipers game over the weekend and realized that they were playing in Raymond James Stadium (the Tampa Bay Buccaneers stadium). This exciting new surge of fans were wearing jerseys and other merchandise, which got me thinking, how does an NFL stadium affect the local economy? Especially with two different leagues utilizing it.
Obviously NFL stadiums are very expensive, does that money get paid off? Professional teams immersed in cities create an irreplaceable culture. The Atlantic says, “Strangers at a bar can commiserate about a loss, and a championship run can bring a city together… But these benefits are intangible.” These stadiums create a huge change in the community, but that change isn’t always economically beneficial. The problem with these stadiums is how they bring in money. Most purchases at NFL stadiums are made by local fans. These local fans would be spending that same money in the area with or without an NFL stadium. NFL stadiums are a new way of circulating money, the ticket and merchandise purchases don’t create that much of an economic change. Also, along with the upfront cost of stadiums, there are maintenance costs and renovation costs throughout the year.There are situations where these stadiums are beneficial for a community. I’ve already talked about the huge cultural benefits, but there are also benefits in the jobs being created and the double utilization involved with an XFL and NFL team in the stadium. Although the jobs are slim they do make a difference. There are temporary construction jobs lasting a few years when the stadium is being made, and there are permanent jobs in the stadium created locally. Another benefit of these stadiums is the utilization by multiple leagues. NFL teams have only 8 home games a year, but once you involve another league such as the XFL, that’s when tickets and merchandise make a bigger impact in the local economy.
Overall, the benefits and losses of NFL stadiums are all situational. Stadiums will thrive in some environments more than others. With the Dallas Cowboys leading the NFL in 2019 in operating income with $420M, and the Oakland Raiders coming last in the league with $28M. NFL stadiums could bust a local economy, while they could also be beneficial. No matter what these stadiums create an unmatchable culture.
I completely agree that it is situational. I know this isn't the nfl but some stadiums are used for more than just the sports. For example, Fiserv Forum hosts many other events beyond the Bucks and so the revenue is still being brought in in a positive manner. Likewise, the global competition for Robotics is held at Ford Field so if the only thing the stadium was used for was sports, I would think it wouldn't bring a net positive but it is everything else that I think benefits the community.
ReplyDeleteI agree as well. From what I know prior to reading this stadiums and aren't just used for the nfl, there are lots of other things hosted there. Like Ryan said a good example is fiserv forum. Another example I would use is Miller park since there have been many concerts held there and many other things such as runs ect. All of these activities bring in some revenue for the stadium since the events are hosted there.
ReplyDeleteI agree with this its becoming more and more popular that stadiums are being used for more then just sporting events.
ReplyDeleteEven though the economic impacts is situational based upon the community and the stadiums can be used for so much more than just football games. Do you think that the NFL should be in charge of funding these new stadiums instead of making the community pay for them? Like you said even if the stadiums are pitched as ideas to make money that profit that is made by the stadiums doesn't outweigh the cost of building and maintaining the stadiums.
ReplyDeleteI do agree with the fact that although the stadiums don't bring a huge economic benefit to the city or state that is located in, it does positively effect the community around it. I also believe that many different events going on in the stadium boosts the popularity of the city and brings more tourist into the city.
ReplyDeleteYou did a great job showing that NFL stadiums and their boost to the economy is purely situational. However, I do feel that stadium's can help the city, when built correctly, with the help of a good organization. For example, the Packers bring people from all over Wisconsin to the small city of Green Bay, a place no one would go without going to see the game. People would spend their money outside of the city. So, at this in this case, an NFL stadium was extremely beneficial to the city of Green Bay.
ReplyDeleteI really liked the article and how you took a topic that you were passionate about and considered the economic ramifications. I do politely disagree with one statement you said though. When you stated that "These local fans would be spending that same money in the area with or without an NFL stadium," I think that the fans would spend more with an NFL stadium in a town. This is because they now have a new good or service to spend their disposable income. This could, and probably would, increase the Marginal propensity to consume for fans, and it might even trigger dis-savings among die-hard fans.
ReplyDeleteI wonder how different this conversation would be if we were talking about NBA stadiums or Hockey arenas because of the vast difference in games played per year. I know the NBA has 41 home games per team in a given season (not including playoffs), so I would love to see if the economic data you brought up would line up with other sports. Also! I want to applaud you for connecting this topic to more than a price tag or reference to GDP- you talked about the cultural benefits that are often overlooked because they don't have a currency. Great post!
ReplyDeleteI also had been thinking about how these large sports teams, such as the Buccaneers that you mentioned, effect the economy of the cities around them. I was confused originally when you stated that it doesn't really help that much. I think the complete opposite. Think about the Fiserv Forum. Notice how since its building little shops and stores are prospering around that corner, and there no longer vacancies. I think with good organization and good economic knowledge of what the people want, a big stadium could be the building block for a prosperous new district.
ReplyDeleteI like how you pointed out that the stadiums were not only used for the sports teams, but also for different events happening in the city. When you said that the stadiums didn't bring the economy of the city up I was really shocked.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that the stadium doesn't always have a huge economic effect but the culture around the team that plays in that arena is what really makes the money. With the Fiserv Forum there are many restaurants and new shops popping up and flourishing because of the culture around basketball in Milwaukee. With a bad team I don't think these shops would be as successful.
ReplyDeleteI also agree that using one stadium for more than one sporting event can be a positive outlook in the community. With this being said, I think that Wisconsin should start their own XFL team and use Lambeau Field as their stadium. This will help Green Bay become more well known outside of the NFL season with more visitors to watch the XFL games.
ReplyDeleteI think you did a great job explaining how the stadiums impact the city. Using one stadium for more than one sporting event can be a positive to the city money wise, publicity, and attract more fans from around the country. The impact is really unreal, especially with popular teams holding very valuable players. With good knowledge economically of what people want, the organization is very successful positively helping the city out.
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