THE BUSINESS OF FOOTBALL

Today

32 teams in NFL Divided into 4 divisions:

East West North South

Roots of football from soccer and rugby

Birth of Pro Football

Nov. 12, 1892: Allegheny Athletic Association (AAA)

William “Pudge” Heffelfinger paid $500 1st evidence of payment Expense sheet: “Pro Football’s Birth

Certificate”

1st Pro Football League

Sept. 17, 1920: American Professional Football Association formed

Canton, Ohio NFL officially started in 1920**Renamed National Football League in

19221st team: Akron IndiansNow 32 teams

1st Championship Game

1932: 2 teams were tied at end of season (Chicago Bears and Portsmouth Spartans)

First time in NFL history, a one-game playoff was staged to determine the 1932 championship.

The score?The losing team moved to Detroit in 1934

and was re-named……

1st Player Draft

Feb. 8, 1936: NFL Hall of Famer Bert Bell intro’d idea

Since then more than 10,000 of the best college players have been drafted to the NFL.

1st player picked in the draftJay Berwanger, Univ of Chic (Heisman

winner) selected by Philadelphia Eagles

1st Televised Game

NBC broadcast the Brooklyn Dodgers-Philadelphia Eagles game from Ebbets Field to approx 1000 sets in New York.

AFL

Aug. 14, 1959: Dallas businessman, Lamar Hunt organized the American Football League

Charter members:Dallas, Denver, Houston, LA, Minneapolis,

NY, Buffalo and Boston

NFL/AFL merged in 1970

1st Superbowl

Jan. 15, 1967: GB Packers vs. KC Chiefs, 35-10

Played in LA Coliseum1st Superbowl not to sell-out

Thanksgiving and NFL

2 cities: Detroit and Dallas hold Thanksgiving day game tradition

Since 1966, Dallas has missed playing on Thanksgiving only 2 times (1975 and 1977)

Lions and Thanksgiving

Tradition began 1934: after George A. Richards had purchased the Portsmouth (OH) Spartans and moved the team to Detroit.

Earl “Dutch” Clark. Most versatile backs came with the Spartans

Scheduled game was risky but thought it would be a good way to attract attention to the new team who were taking a backseat to the Tigers.

The Risk…and result

26,000 tickets were sold. Played at U of D stadium. Sold out 2 weeks in advance.

Bears vs. Lions (19-16)

1935: Lions won NFL Championship

With exception of 6 season gap (1939-1944), Turkey Day tradition has not been interupted.

Value of NFL teams

http://video.forbes.com/fvn/sportsmoney/sal-on-nfl

In 2011, average value $1.04 Billion #1: Dallas Cowboys $1.85 billion

owner Jerry Jones, New Stadium- $1.2 billion in construction boasts 160 foot wide scoreboard & seats up to 100,000

Sponsorship Revenue: $50 million Stadium Revenue: $115 million/annually from

suites and club seats $119 million earned in operating revenue last year

Team Values

#2: Washington Redskins $1.55 billion #3: New England Patriots $1.4 billion

Value of Detroit Lions

Detroit Lions #26: $844 million William Clay Ford purchased in 1964 for $5 million Valuation Breakdown Sport $656 mil Market $89

mil Stadium $65 mil Brand Management $34 mil Major corporate sponsors are Anheuser-Busch

InBev (nyse: BUD), McDonald's (nyse: MCD), PepsiCo (nyse: PEP), Quicken Loans, Meijer. Naming rights sponsor is Ford Motor (nyse: F).

Year Opened 2002, Capacity 65,000, Cost To Build $540 mil, Concessionaire Levy Restaurants, Average Ticket Price $62

The Business of the Lions

Metro- Population 4.4 million Only one blackout game last year (2009-

4 blackouts) Media Partners TV WXYZ-TV ABC 7

Radio WXYT FM 97.1 Revenue per fan: $11 Player Expense $147 million

Lion’s Name & Brand

Owner George A. Richards, radio exec, said “The lion is the monarch of the jungle and we hope to be the monarch of the league.” Tradition began 1934: after George A. Richards had purchased the Portsmouth (OH) Spartans and moved the team to Detroit.

Colors: Honolulu Blue, Silver, White, Black

What determines value?

TV Revenue: about $116,000,000 for each team/year

New stadiums with luxury suites Naming rights to stadiums (millions per

year) Growing # of female fans (fan base 40%

female, 60% male) Increased ticket, concession and

merchandise sales