Revenue Sharing: Quest for Certainty

  “We (NFL owners) are a bunch of fat-cat Republicans who vote socialist on football.” —Art Modell, former owner of the NFL Cleveland Browns/Baltimore Ravens “The NFL is a perfect portfolio.” —John Vrooman, The Economist League Think Over the last half-century the NFL has become the most economically powerful sports league in the world largely because it has also…

Posted by John Vrooman on June 11, 2020 in Major League Baseball, National Basketball Association, National Football League, National Hockey League, Sports Econ Blog

---

Salary Cap: Monopsony Power Play

Salary Cap Theory / Big 4 Cap History / Cap Graphs / Combo Graphs  / Cap Mechanics / QFV Theory / CBI & Beta Balance / Perfect Game / Two to Tango / Monopsony Power / “In theory there is no difference between theory and practice. In practice there is.” –Yogi Berra Quid Pro Quo Salary caps in professional sports originated in the 1984-85…

Posted by John Vrooman on April 23, 2020 in Major League Baseball, National Basketball Association, National Football League, National Hockey League, Sports Econ Blog

---

Coronaviral Impact

Interview with Wall Street Journal / Toronto Star / AFP /  What sports and what teams do you think are most likely to be financially impacted by fans not attending, or not being allowed to attend games? Hockey? Baseball? Minor leagues? Major leagues? Which sports and teams’ revenue models make them most vulnerable to this type…

Posted by John Vrooman on March 13, 2020 in Major League Baseball, National Basketball Association, National Football League, National Hockey League, Sports Econ Blog

---

NHL Logit Power Ranking

NHL V-Power Logit Rank 3/6/20 / Hockey Reference. NHL V-Power Logit Rank 2/27/20 /  NHL V-Power Logit Rank 2/7/20 /  NHL V-Power Logit Rank 12/20/19 / 

Posted by John Vrooman on March 6, 2020 in National Hockey League, Sports Econ Blog

---

Cinderella Blues

Interview with St. Louis Biz Journal / Complete Interview with Graphics / Graphics XLS. Blues into the black graphics  / Follow-up graphics XLS. Broadly speaking, what does a Stanley Cup championship mean for an NHL franchise financially? The first Stanley Cup Championship for the Blues will pay the bills and sell plenty of t-shirts, but in the relatively risky business of…

Posted by John Vrooman on June 15, 2019 in National Hockey League, Sports Econ Blog

---

We the New North

Toronto Star 6/3/19 / Complete Interview: We the New North (PDF with Graphics) / Graphics XLS. Globe & Mail 6/14/19 / Article PDF / Complete Interview (PDF with Graphics) Globe & Mail–Will the Championship directly or immediately affect the team’s valuation? The first Canadian NBA Championship for the Raptors will certainly pay the bills and sell plenty of We…

Posted by John Vrooman on June 5, 2019 in National Basketball Association, National Hockey League, Sports Econ Blog

---

Skating into the Black

Interview with Columbus Business First. -What’s the difference, economic impact-wise and team finances-wise, of the Predators making the Stanley Cup Final, as opposed to just having a moderately successful playoff run? The rule of thumb in the NHL is that clubs breakeven on average over the regular season, and then generate positive in the black…

Posted by John Vrooman on May 9, 2019 in National Hockey League, Sports Econ Blog

---

On Thin Ice

The big market clubs in NYC (MSG), LA (Staples) and Chicago (United) are noticeably absent from the NHL and NBA playoffs. Toronto Maple Leafs were knocked out in the first round of the playoffs and they haven’t won a Stanley Cup in 50 years.  Why are high revenue clubs not dominating the NBA and NHL as expected?  See 2018 NHL…

Posted by John Vrooman on May 8, 2019 in National Basketball Association, National Hockey League, Sports Econ Blog

---

Post-Season Puzzle

Theory of the Big Dance.  My sh*t doesn’t work in the playoffs. My job is to get us to the playoffs. What happens after that is f***ing luck. —Billy Beane, GM Oakland Athletics In the first round of the current 2019 NHL playoffs five of the eight higher seeded teams with home ice advantage lost…

Posted by John Vrooman on April 28, 2019 in National Basketball Association, National Hockey League, Sports Econ Blog

---

NHL Playoff Match-ups Round 1

NHL Playoff Probabilities 4/7/19 NHL VRX Power Pix 3/27/19. NHL VRX Power Pix 3/7/19. NHL VRX Power Picks 2/24/19. NHL VRX Power Picks 2/7/19. NHL VRX Picks: 1/16/19.  NHL-V-Power Picks:12/20/18.

Posted by John Vrooman on April 7, 2019 in National Hockey League

---

The Puck Stops Here

Interview with AP / USAToday.  Followup AP / Second Class Settlement? We are hoping someone like yourself can walk us through how the NFL and NHL concussion settlements are different and why. The NFL agreed to a billion-dollar settlement. It seems the NHL players got just $19 million (we are still working to confirm that number on the record,…

Posted by John Vrooman on November 12, 2018 in National Hockey League

---

The Closing Window

Interview with the New York Times. PDF and Images. Roger Noll of Stanford had some pretty good stuff today on how the Knights’ miraculous run “attenuates the honeymoon effect,” from the typical three-year window for expansion teams in non-traditional hockey markets. 1) Is that something you generally agree with? Yes I mentioned that in print…

Posted by John Vrooman on June 10, 2018 in National Hockey League

---

Revolving Revolution

Interview with Columbus Dispatch. Back in 2012, the city and the county purchased what was then a privately held arena, relying on casino tax money to prop up arena operations, repay loans used in the purchase and pay for capital repairs. Those tax receipts have fallen well short of projections, and the arena has no…

Posted by John Vrooman on May 31, 2018 in National Hockey League

---

Mystery Ticket Shortage

Interview with Toronto Star. We’re revealing that MLSE has designated an unknown number of season ticket holders “commercial resellers” and marked up their tickets 30% for next season. They also offer to cancel the markup if the ticket holder joins a “preferred reseller program” which hasn’t been well defined yet, but many suspect will involve…

Posted by John Vrooman on April 11, 2018 in National Hockey League

---

Golden Knights Rising

Interview with Bleacher Report. Are you surprised by the fan support this year? In the past, you’ve referred to Vegas as a “sham” market. Obviously the attendance success shouldn’t change the economic makeup of the city, but do you still stick by this or is there more heft behind them than you originally thought? Should…

Posted by John Vrooman on January 24, 2018 in National Hockey League

---

Perfect Storm

Interview with La Presse 5/31/17 Perfect Storm Graphics  This last decade has been a slow developing perfect storm for the Smashville Preds, both on and off the ice. The confluence of favorable events began with a last ditch local ownership flip in 2007-08 and a recommitment to keeping the Preds in a non-traditional sun-belt midmarket,…

Posted by John Vrooman on May 31, 2017 in National Hockey League

---

Smashville

Interview with Nashville Biz Journal -What’s the difference, economic impact-wise and team finances-wise, of the Predators making the Stanley Cup Final, as opposed to just having a moderately successful playoff run? The classic rule of thumb in the NHL is that clubs break even on average over the regular season, and then generate positive in…

Posted by John Vrooman on May 16, 2017 in National Hockey League

---

Big Gamble in Vegas

Interview series on Vegas as NHL expansion market. Vegas Review Journal  Preds v Titans comparison Initially the NHL Nashville Preds surprisingly held their own against the NFL Tennessee Titans, but it soon became apparent that the novelty of hockey in a non-traditional sun-belt hockey market was risky business. Both NFL and NHL teams rely heavily…

Posted by John Vrooman on March 27, 2017 in National Hockey League

---

Off the Market

Interview with Pittsburgh Tribune. I’m writing a story today about the Penguins no longer being for sale. I noticed there hasn’t been a franchise sold in the big four sports in the U.S. since the Atlanta Hawks in 2015. I wondered if there was something going on in the big picture to slow down the…

Posted by John Vrooman on October 13, 2016 in National Hockey League

---

Hockey in the Desert

Interview with Las Vegas Sun. NHL Expansion/Relocation. Bottom line: NHL hockey can and will probably survive, but not thrive in Las Vegas. It is highly doubtful that the expected cash flow from more hockey in the Desert can justify the bloated expansion sticker price of $500 million, which is the current average value of an…

Posted by John Vrooman on June 27, 2016 in National Hockey League

---

Pens Playoff Paradox

Interview with Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. How rare is it in sports that a team previously put up for sale ended up winning the championship? I can’t find much on this. It is not very common for a winning club to go on the market, as a matter of fact the reverse is more likely to be…

Posted by John Vrooman on June 17, 2016 in National Hockey League

---

Not Rocket Science

Interview with Raleigh News Observer. Hurricanes compared. * The Hurricanes owner, Peter Karmanos, announced in Sept. 2014 he would put his majority ownership stake on the market. Karmanos said at the time that the proper value for the franchise would be $400 million, or near what the Islanders were acquired for that year. Was this…

Posted by John Vrooman on February 16, 2016 in National Hockey League

---

Out of the Money

Interview with USA Today / and CNBC NHL Expansion/Relocation. How valuable is the Las Vegas market for any sports league? What do you see as Las Vegas’ strengths and weaknesses as a market Las Vegas is probably beyond the economic edge for expansion of any of the 4 major NA sports leagues. This is probably from…

Posted by John Vrooman on July 19, 2015 in National Hockey League

---

NHL For Sale

Interview with Pittsburgh Tribune. Expansion Proposal. I’m working on a story about the possible sale of the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Hurricanes have been on the market for at least a year, and the Penguins announced seven months ago they were exploring a sale but nothing has materialized. Some deals made in recent years managed to…

Posted by John Vrooman on July 11, 2015 in National Hockey League

---

Puck on the Net

Interview with NY Times. Would you, even almost 20 years after hockey came to Nashville, characterize it as a niche sport here? Yes, but this is true for almost all markets after the original 6 plus the next 6 clubs. Outside of these 12 markets hockey is considered a boutique sport with specialized but devout…

Posted by John Vrooman on February 25, 2015 in National Hockey League

---

Ticket Drive Test

Interview with USA Today. Expansion Theory. How valuable is the Las Vegas market for any sports league? What do you see as Las Vegas’ strengths and weaknesses as a market Las Vegas is probably beyond the economic edge for expansion of any of the 4 major NA sports leagues. This is probably from both the…

Posted by John Vrooman on January 15, 2015 in National Hockey League

---

Winning Streak

Interview with CBS.  The NHL has almost doubled its revenue since 2006.  What’s the secret to its success? The NHL last added nine clubs in 9 years in their ill-fated sun-belt expansion from 1991 – 1999. This caused an explosion in payrolls from 56 percent of revenue to over 75 percent by 2003-04. This immediately…

Posted by John Vrooman on November 7, 2014 in National Hockey League

---