CALIFORNIA BUSINESS MINUTE
The Business of Football in California
08-29-08
Hi, I am Tim Johnson and welcome to the California Business Minute.
Football is big business in the state. And the season of pro and college football is
ready to begin.
The NFL is the most valuable and profitable team sport in the world. In 2007, the
average team was worth $957 a major increase from $819 million value from 2005.
In fact, it is beyond the value of the second place rival in this category, Major League
Baseball and its franchises and well beyond the average value of franchises for the
National Basketball Association and the National Hockey League. The Leagues
national television contract, $17.6 billion over 8 years is in part responsible for the rich
valuations of the franchises and the fat margins of each team.
At the college level, some of the states teams generate revenues comparable to
professional sports teams. USCs Athletic Department budget is over $100 million.
They have practice and playing facilities that rival those found in professional sports
and they pay their top coaches comparable to the pros. Californias college athletes
are coveted with lavish stadiums, training fields and locker room amenities. Customers
are wooed with branded apparel, videos, logos and advertisement. Business interests
are captured on stadium scoreboards, billboards and logos on uniforms.
And at the end of the season, the state periodically hosts a Super Bowl or one of Californias
pro teams, 49ers, Raiders and Chargers appear in the game. And on the college scene,
the state hosts the grand daddy of them all, the Rose Bowl along with Holiday, Poinsettia
and Emerald Bowls. Football, its American, just like apple pie and the girl net door, and
no place is it more evident than in the Golden State. So lets kick off the season!
I am Tim Johnson and this has been the California Business Minute.
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