Are Pro Football and Pro Baseball Next To Fail?

Two of my greatest passions in life are finance and sports.  Both present great competition, winning and losing, physical and mental strength, and finally a ton of fun.  Recently it seems that there has been a lot more losses occurring in the financial world then wins and I hope that it doesn’t have a trickle down affect to losses in the sports industry as well.  We’ve all seen the drama surrounding the economy in recent weeks and one of the first things that popped into my mind was how this financial stress would affect ticket prices and sports team in general.

As it stands right now, I think that ticket prices are simply outrageous.  For me to bring my family of four to a ball game it’s easily a $150 drop in the bucket.  Granted we could get by with less of a price tag but then it would pretty much eliminate the fun of having a hot dog, sodas, and some peanuts.  When you see the look on your kids face after they get a chance to see their sports hero’s live, it becomes a littler easier to stomach the pain of dropping $10 bucks on a hot dog and chips.  As if the price of a game wasn’t bad enough currently, I wonder if there is going to be price increases across the board on tickets, food, and beverage.  If you take a look at how sports teams generate revenue, most of the significant money they make comes from corporations.  Just think about the millions of dollars that are spent by big and small companies on suites, stadium naming rights, and advertising.  With the financial crunch eating into the bottom line profits of most companies, I would have to think they are going to cut back on spending, including that which involves professional sports.  Ultimately that could more then likely mean that teams and leagues need to make up for lost money via higher ticket, food, and beverage prices.  Ouch.

I’ve been saying for years that player and owner salaries have ran out of control.  At the end of the day they can warrant that pay because we as fans and corporations have been willing to foot the bill.  With the economy slipping and less discretionary funds in the hopper, it’s going to be interesting to see if there’s a direct impact on attendance levels, corporate sponsorships, and ultimately team budgets.  At what level do you say enough is enough and the price of going to a game is simply too high?