Welcome to the last weekly roundup of 2024! It was a bit of a slow week thanks to the holiday, when even team execs and elected officials (though not always journalists) tend to take a break from stadium and arena shenanigans and focus on eating overpriced peppermint bark or whatever.
It was a weird year in the sports subsidy world: Kansas City voters rejected a sales tax hike to fund stadiums for the Royals and Chiefs, only to have the team owners get the state of Kansas to approve $1.4 billion or more in public bonds for new stadiums there, though they haven’t yet committed to taking the offer; the Virginia legislature rejected a $1 billion–plus subsidy for a new Washington Capitals and Wizards arena, only to have Washington, D.C. provide more than half a billion in renovation money; Illinois state officials said repeatedly that they weren’t interested in funding a new Chicago Bears stadium, only to have team execs keep coming back with even more proposals for new stadiums; Florida elected officials rejected an already-approved Tampa Bay Rays stadium before later unrejecting it. Or maybe it’s not such a weird year, given that the two constants since the whole great stadium swindle started back in the 1980s have been the populace being steamed about huge piles of their tax money going to wealthy sports owners and the wealthy sports owners coming back with “we’re sorry to hear that, but we would still like the huge piles of money.” They will fight eternally.
But let’s look forwards, not backwards! Time to clear away the remaining news items and get ready for 2025:
- The city of Boston signed a lease with the NWSL club BOS Nation FC to play at the city-owned White Stadium, which will be rebuilt at a cost of around $200 million, of which taxpayers will cover $91 million or more. According to Boston Business Journal, the team will “keep the bulk of revenue from matches” aside from 10% of in-stadium advertising revenues and 3% of concessions revenue, while paying $400,000 a year in rent (rising by 3% each year) and a $1-per-ticket surcharge. (The renovated stadium will also be available for use by Boston public school teams on days when BOS Nation FC doesn’t need it, though presumably they won’t need things like the restaurant and beer garden being planned for the pro team.) There is no possible way taxpayers won’t take a bath on this unless every single soccer ticket buyer spends around $1,000 on concessions, which seems a bit ambitious.
- WJLA-TV interviewed businesses near the current Washington Commanders stadium — well, a cashier at one brunch restaurant — to find out what they think of the team maybe moving to a new stadium in D.C., and she replied: “We’re busy on Sundays. I think the Commanders fans, they bleed into our Sundays. They’re in the areas. These are popular shopping areas. Definitely probably going to see an increase post- or before the games.” Definitely probably! No need to interview anyone else, slot that in for the 6 pm news.
- George Petak died. You know, this guy. Out of respect for his family and friends, I will not make any jokes about potential efforts to recall him from heaven.
That’s all she wrote! See you back here on Monday.
“10% of in-stadium advertising revenues and 3% of concessions revenue, while paying $400,000 a year in rent (rising by 3% each year) and a $1-per-ticket surcharge”
I think terms like these are stupid. I am sure politicians pat themselves on the back for including them, but I doubt the teams’ books are ever audited to make sure they are paying the correct amounts.
There was a story in Chicago this past year that when events (concerts, street fairs, etc) are held and organizers need to reimburse the city for police overtime, the invoices are just ignored and the city never bothered to follow through and collect. I think the Cubs may have been one of the guilty parties.
monkey versus robot
…. Rock on into 2025!
:)
Dave Kaval president of the A’s and point man for moving the A’s has resigned
https://www.sfgate.com/athletics/article/dave-kaval-resigns-a-s-team-president-20003358.php
!!!
Does that mean Vegas is dead?
They’ve been foregrounding Sandy Dean as the new public face in the last couple of meetings with Vegas, so I doubt it’s any deader than it was three weeks ago. Definitely seems like a “vaya con dios” moment, tho.
Wouldn’t you just give anything if he announces tomorrow that he has resigned to head up a push for an expansion team in Oakland???
Whatever will Failson Fisher do now that his chief strategist is no longer in the building (not that there IS a building…)
An Owner’s Small Wish
Taxpayers should build me a dome.
To pamper the fans when at home.
And if it is practical,
a roof that’s retractable.
I have screw-the-public syn-drome.
This is absolutely brilliant.
Neil, you should include as the forward of the next book edition.
Frisco, TX, (aka YOUR “Sports City, U.S.A.”) has spent hundreds of millions of tax dollars on the alleged windfall of benefits from “partnering” with pro sports teams to build them free stadiums that the local yutes also get to use on a handful of dates a year that the pro teams don’t need them.
They have all the requisite necessities for keeping up with the arms race that is high school football in the North Dallas exurbs like luxury boxes, hi-def video replay boards, and — of course — a domed roof, and it’s great that little Jaxxon and Hayleigh’s parents get to pretend that their offspring are Dallas Cowboys players and cheerleaders, but the downside of all this largesse is that the games are staged in these enormous overbuilt venues that seat 12,000 to 20,000 people for games that draw MAYBE 2000 people beyond the compulsory attendees of bands, dance teams, and cheerleaders.
As a spectator, there is exactly zero buzz / atmosphere / excitement / pulse / signs of life from so few people in such a large venue sitting so far back from the field. One of the defining moments of my daughter’s high school band experience was the away game where they went to a smaller city with a traditional high school stadium and her excitement from being in that setting with the visiting fans crammed together in some aluminum bleachers sitting almost on the field with just a concrete sidewalk separating the bleachers from the back of the sideline area. At her home games, they may as well have been playing in a mausoleum.