Last week we first looked at possible stadium venues in Oakland that were realistically being looked at.
“Raiders Stadium Sites Update; Video: How to Morph Levi’s & A Future NFL Stadium”
We also looked at realistic ways to pay for these stadiums. The outpouring of positive comments and support for these ideas was amazing with thousands seeing that this could actually be done in a responsible manner. I really appreciate my smart readers.
Raider Fans Awaken:
First off, Mark Davis is the owner of the Raiders and that isn’t changing. He’s not going to sell and can’t be forced to sell unless he does something illegal. No petition will change that.
Let’s face it; social media has changed everything. Many people refuse to look at actions or facts exchanging them for biased opinions and conjecture. I guess I’m not smart enough to do that because I just go by what I see. And what I see shocks me.
First off I would love to have a beer and a burger with Mark Davis. He has that dorky fun type of thing going on. He doesn’t seem like a bad guy. The reality of the matter though is that as an owner, he’s in way over his head. How many of you in your first 6 decades of life never held a job. Now you own a billion dollar business.
His actions have shown a lot about the Raiders situation. It’s almost as if the City of Oakland is like a guy that has this girlfriend. She’s not hot; been beaten up by life a bit; is kind and loyal as all get out but he now sees there are physically hotter women out there. He spends time and money on Inglewood and San Antonio (Raiders gave 50k to help spend for a city wide questionnaire in 2014 on how much their fans would want the Raiders) but all the while he tells his girlfriend Oakland that he’s not cheating and really wants her. He explains that he loves her and he’s not even looking for better options; he’s just using these as leverage to make sure the City of Oakland is serious in making a commitment. Everyone who believes that is as naive as an 18 year old girl at her first fraternity party.
Most Raider fans are angry and they are getting an education in NFL 101. I love football but that doesn’t mean I love how the NFL treats people. Look at how the NFL treats the refs; they said they can’t afford them to be full time even though bad calls are almost the norm now. The cheerleaders have to sue the NFL just to get minimum wage. Retired players are treated like old race horses that are no longer needed. And fans are money signs where emotions and loyalty mean little.
Yet some fans are sensitive about their love of football and they will deny facts and defend every move the NFL makes until their dying day even though the NFL doesn’t care about anyone else but their profits. Reminds me of some that blindly defend political parties. You can love a sport but still be honest about it.
Mark Davis acts like Oakland isn’t even on his radar at times. You hope that he wakes up and puts the same effort into Oakland that he has into other cities.
How Do NFL Teams Make Money?:
The NFL is now the richest professional league in the world. The NFL has 3 types of revenue. National Revenue or Revenue Sharing; which has television revenue, national ad revenue and general ticket sales along with other miscellaneous items. This adds up to about 61% of NFL teams revenues.
The second form of revenue; which is NOT shared by the teams; is Territorial Revenue. This is money made anywhere near the radius of the teams home city. It could be in the form of in person or online merchandise sales, local television, radio and tv ad revenues, naming rights to the stadium and other things. This is also a large chunk of the teams revenue. This includes PSL’s. Below is a list of the PSL revenues. Dont’ kill the messenger.
http://www.mprnews.org/story/2012/11/15/sports/nfl-personal-seat-licenses-compared
The third which is also not shared; and a far third at that; is ticket revenue. Why do you think teams are so obsessed with getting new stadiums? Well this is why. Teams share general ticket sales but KEEP all revenues made by luxury suites, club seat ticket sales, parking and any type of luxury boxes. While fans gave a salute for New England Patriot owner Robert Kraft for not charging a PSL (personal seat licenses) to the fans on his stadium, they forgot to add that he tore down 1500 end zone seats (which is revenue that is shared among NFL teams) and put in a huge luxury/club suite area. He pockets millions without sharing.
I went on the Dallas Cowboys web site and asked for suite information. I counted 116 luxury suites alone in Dallas’ AT&T stadium and that doesn’t count club seats. Some of these suites are $30,000.00 per game and ALL of this money is NON revenue sharing and goes straight into Jerry Jones pocket.
Let’s also not forgot PSL’s. It’s literally free money. It’s like what Costco does and teams make so much money off of it you can’t count it.
Once PSL’s are paid for it’s predicted that the 49ers will make between $310-400 million just on PSL’s. The most expensive PSL in Dallas will cost you $150,000.00 PER TICKET and they expect between $625-675 million in PSL revenue once they are paid for.
Oakland Raider Revenue:
The NFL has always been extremely secretive about their profits. They’ve lied a lot about them in the past before the internet. The number for the Raiders or any team is really a guess. Forbes gives the best estimate. As many have stated, the Raiders are worth $1.4 billion dollars and that the Davis’ family is worth $500 million. Again, San Diego and Oakland do not have businesses so they are considered the poor teams in the NFL. While most of the owners are worth billions, the Davis’ and Spanos’ families only have their NFL teams. Now dry your eyes; somehow these guys will make it financially.
Last year Forbes stated that the Raiders made $285 million dollars gross. They made $40 million in ticket sales and paid out $158 million in player salaries. Their operating costs were the lowest in the NFL but again, the Raiders would not disclose the number. In contrast the Dallas Cowboys made a staggering $680 million. The operating costs were #1 as well but no one knows the exact number. The Cowboys are worth 4 billion dollars and are considered the #2 most valuable sports franchise in the world only behind Spain’s soccer empire, Real Madrid.
I read 5 financial online publications and 7 sports publications and got 12 different financial numbers and ideas on NFL revenues. On average most believe the profits for the lower teams like the Raiders are between $25-40 million net profit per year and that doesn’t include the appreciation of the teams which is in the millions. It is believed that this is the first year in NFL history that they made over $14 billion dollars in one year.
Roger Goodell has stated that his goal is for the NFL to make 25 in 25; $25 BILLION per year by the year 2025. They still dream of expanding to London in the next two decades. The NFL would be considered the 140th richest COUNTRY in the world right now. They could finance several trips to space and buy several countries. That’s scary power.
Green Bay Packers; The Key To Knowing the Profit:
Remember that before the internet, the NFL lied so much about revenues that it was a running joke in the financial community. NFL teams still don’t have to disclose financials but the Green Bay Packers are owned by the public so they are the only team that actually has to state their revenues but again, that’s shared revenues only. If you add up their share with the rest of the league, the NFL made $7.2 Billion in money that was shared by the teams. Again, this doesn’t include territorial money.
In the past decade or so the Packers have spent $320 million in upgrades to their stadium and surrounding area. They have built stores to sell Packer gear online and in house and have made a bundle. They also have renovated the stadium and they are building a “Titletown” area which will have shops and other ways to show off the tradition of Green Bay and to give a museum and fan experience to their faithful. They now are in the process of also upgrading their club and luxury suites. Green Bay is a classic Midwest team and is obsessed with giving their fans the utmost they can while turning a huge profit.
In the past 3 years, the Packers revenue has gone up from $300 million to $375 million. Their net profit last year was $39.4 million. Even with putting over $300 million into renovations and upgrades, the Packers have said financially they’ve never been stronger.
Final Thoughts:
The extreme greed of the NFL is unsurpassed and isn’t going to change. Billionaires want one thing; more billions. Anyone thinking differently has never owned a business. I worked for a fortune 500 company that was the biggest money making medical company in the U.S. To them though it still wasn’t enough. They were caught in a insurance scandal and my CEO was arrested by the Department of Justice and it was reported on national television.
What does this all mean? It means that owners are not loyal to cities or to fans; they are loyal to what will make them money. I’m glad that fans are getting it. You can still love your teams and cheer for players but also realize this isn’t family; its business. In my opinion, if Mark Davis wanted to they could figure out a stadium in Oakland. Apple is making over $200 billion a year and this is chump change to many tech companies. Just like the 49ers, there isn’t a door I would not knock on. I hope he learned from the mistakes of his father Al Davis. You can only go back home so many times before no one is there waiting for you at the door.
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