January 31, 2004
Super Bowling for dollars
On the eve of Super Bowl Sunday, NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue has been busily trying to leverage the promise of future Super Bowls to shake loose stadium subsidies for his teams. Yesterday Tagliabue called the San Diego Chargers' desire for a new stadium "an urgent situation," following that up by declaring that "the Vikings clearly have a need for a new stadium." The commissioner promised that cities with new facilities will get preference in being host to future Super Bowls, which he claimed can bring as much as $300 million in economic activity to an area (a figure called into doubt by the research of economist Philip Porter). Added Vikings owner Red McCombs: "It's a great opportunity for the people of Minnesota." Well, one person, anyway.
