Without having too deep of an ethical discussion, I wanted to write about Michael Vick and his journey back to stardom in the NFL. Everyone knows what Michael Vick did in terms of abusing dogs in the underground activity of dog fighting. Unlike most celebrities and star athletes however, Vick spent 21 months in prison and did not get the celebrity treatment. Vick then worked hard to get back on an NFL franchise, eventually landing with the successful and healthy Philadelphia Eagles, which was a great break for Vick. Donovan McNabb provided him with great mentorship, and is a close personal friend. Then, a strange thing happened. McNabb was traded to the division rival Redskins, which left a hole at starting quarterback. Initially taking a backseat to Kevin Kolb, Vick finally got his chance a few weeks ago to start, and performed tremendously. 291 yards passing with 3 touchdowns, and 1 rushing touchdown on the way to having a passer rating of over 100. The Sports Business Journal then brought up an interesting question. Should we consider Vick back for good, and should sponsors take chances on him again?
Back when Vick was with the Falcons in the height of his success, Vick had deals with EA Sports, Coke/Powerade, Kraft, Rawlings, Hasbro, AirTran, and Nike. The most famous Vick commercial was Nike's The Michael Vick Experience. Once the dog fighting controversy occurred however, Vick lost the entirety of his endorsements. Now that he is back on the field, his agent, Joel Segal of Lagardere Unlimited, says his on-field play is the main focus. "The calls have been coming in, but it's not something that's on the front burner for us... This is something we are taking slowly" says Joel. I was extremely happy that Vick seems to have an agent willing to take his time, and build the Vick brand back up slowly, gaining positive press for on field performances and public community appearances. If Vick continues to succeed on the field, he will certainly gain endorsements, with his exciting style of play.
A Couple quick hits:
- Ben Roethlisberger is the new Michael Vick, and Big Ben's behavior is going to be intsensely critiqued after the second rape allegation.
- Here is a great video that contains Vick being auto-tuned. He shows up around 43 seconds into the video.
I sincerely hope Vick's injury does not keep him off the field for very long, as I am becoming a fan of his again, and I look forward to seeing him play.
Next article: Cowboys Stadium Review
Oct 24, 2010
Oct 20, 2010
State of the NBA
As I mentioned in my first blog post, my dream industry is to work in is the National Basketball League. I love the fun and fast-paced environment that the league has, and in my opinion the league takes the most chances, especially when mobile marketing and social media are involved. For example, here is a graph showing the social media usage in each league:
A crucial step in working in any industry is having a solid understanding of where the industry is and where is it going? I am going to discuss the NBA's most recent offseason impacts and the new referee rules specifically.
1) NBA Offseason 2010
Although this past off-season was filled with as many quality players as there have ever been on the market at one time, the ultimate destination of LeBron James captured everyone's attention. Would he stay in Cleveland, still be the man but with a better supporting cast in Chicago, gravitate towards the bright lights of New York, hang out with Jay-Z in New Jersey or team up with Dwayne Wade in Miami? Just reading that sentence gives a snapshot of how intricate this entire process was. Almost every player, with the few exceptions (Joe Johnson and Amare Stoudemire) did not choose their new destination until after LeBron chose Miami. While I could debate the merits of LeBron leaving Cleveland for a long time in terms of short term ramifications, I want to focus on the long run changes this will cause.
Never before have players controlled an NBA offseason to this extent before. Players were open about their discussions with players and their attempts to persuade certain players to specific teams to play with them. There was even the much hyped Chris Bosh, Dwayne Wade, and LeBron James dinner that many believe sealed the deal for the eventual decision. While the NBA has always been dominated by teams with multiple stars (Celtics-Cousy, Russell; Celtics - McHale, Parish, Bird; Lakers - Johnson, Abdul-Jabbar; Spurs - Duncan, Ginobili, Parker; etc.) this is different in that many of the best players switched teams in their primes while choosing with each other and trying to create Super Teams. This concept can be traced back a few years where the 2004 Lakers brought Karl Malone and Gary Payton to team up with Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant. The team made it to the Finals but were dismantled by the Detroit Pistons and was the last year with Shaq in Los Angeles. A few years later the 2008 Celtics brought Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen to join Paul Pierce, which eventually lead to them winning a ring. Each super teams has done it a little bit better in this decade and if that improvement happens again, the Heat could shatter the Bulls all-time best record. With the NBA Lockout coming up, the control of players is a big issue. There are talks of trying to have a hard cap, which means that a lot of the current contracts would have to be rewritten and nullified to make room under the cap. Whatever happens, the control of players is definitely something to keep an eye out for.
Shorter term, I see there being a big news line this year about the new rules allowing referees to call more technical fouls on players for emotional responses during the game. While I understand that the league is trying to promote a cleaner product, this has the potential to make the game more boring to watch, the players more frustrated, and eventually, hurt their fan engagement. The draw to basketball over football and baseball is the speed of the game, and the lack of wait time between plays. If technical fouls are constantly being called, the game will slow down, and some of the game's best players will be sitting in the locker room for the crucial moments of the games. I believe this needs to be changed, and I hope it will.
Thanks for reading, next article will be about Michael Vick.
A crucial step in working in any industry is having a solid understanding of where the industry is and where is it going? I am going to discuss the NBA's most recent offseason impacts and the new referee rules specifically.
1) NBA Offseason 2010
Although this past off-season was filled with as many quality players as there have ever been on the market at one time, the ultimate destination of LeBron James captured everyone's attention. Would he stay in Cleveland, still be the man but with a better supporting cast in Chicago, gravitate towards the bright lights of New York, hang out with Jay-Z in New Jersey or team up with Dwayne Wade in Miami? Just reading that sentence gives a snapshot of how intricate this entire process was. Almost every player, with the few exceptions (Joe Johnson and Amare Stoudemire) did not choose their new destination until after LeBron chose Miami. While I could debate the merits of LeBron leaving Cleveland for a long time in terms of short term ramifications, I want to focus on the long run changes this will cause.
Never before have players controlled an NBA offseason to this extent before. Players were open about their discussions with players and their attempts to persuade certain players to specific teams to play with them. There was even the much hyped Chris Bosh, Dwayne Wade, and LeBron James dinner that many believe sealed the deal for the eventual decision. While the NBA has always been dominated by teams with multiple stars (Celtics-Cousy, Russell; Celtics - McHale, Parish, Bird; Lakers - Johnson, Abdul-Jabbar; Spurs - Duncan, Ginobili, Parker; etc.) this is different in that many of the best players switched teams in their primes while choosing with each other and trying to create Super Teams. This concept can be traced back a few years where the 2004 Lakers brought Karl Malone and Gary Payton to team up with Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant. The team made it to the Finals but were dismantled by the Detroit Pistons and was the last year with Shaq in Los Angeles. A few years later the 2008 Celtics brought Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen to join Paul Pierce, which eventually lead to them winning a ring. Each super teams has done it a little bit better in this decade and if that improvement happens again, the Heat could shatter the Bulls all-time best record. With the NBA Lockout coming up, the control of players is a big issue. There are talks of trying to have a hard cap, which means that a lot of the current contracts would have to be rewritten and nullified to make room under the cap. Whatever happens, the control of players is definitely something to keep an eye out for.
Shorter term, I see there being a big news line this year about the new rules allowing referees to call more technical fouls on players for emotional responses during the game. While I understand that the league is trying to promote a cleaner product, this has the potential to make the game more boring to watch, the players more frustrated, and eventually, hurt their fan engagement. The draw to basketball over football and baseball is the speed of the game, and the lack of wait time between plays. If technical fouls are constantly being called, the game will slow down, and some of the game's best players will be sitting in the locker room for the crucial moments of the games. I believe this needs to be changed, and I hope it will.
Thanks for reading, next article will be about Michael Vick.
Oct 18, 2010
New Meadowlands Stadium
After the new Amway Arena that I reviewed last week, I wanted to switch sports and discuss a new football stadium. Being that the New Meadowlands Stadium was awarded the Super Bowl XLVIII Bid over any of the warm weather bids, I thought it would be a great starting point.
New Meadowlands Stadium is extremely unique in that it hosts two different football teams at the same time. This makes it equivalent to Basketball's Staples Center. There have been widely publicized issues between the Jets and Giants, and who should be considered the majority franchise. Regardless of fan opinion, the Giants were always known in the old stadium more prominently than the Jets because they played in the stadium before the Jets. Now, with the Stadium hosting hundreds of different events every year with different sports and teams, it seems that the Stadium belongs only to the city of New York.
Although the virtual tour is being adjusted and is currently not available on the website, I saw a video rendering of it closer to the time it opened. There were a few things that stuck out to me. One, the stadium architecture was built considering consumer flow in mind. With better parking lots, more entry gates to the stadium, wider walker lanes, and bigger in-stadium lounges, it is clear that comfort was a huge focal point. Along with the wonderful suites, and the extremely cool field level VIP Lounge, people should be able to be very comfortable in the stadium. The VIP Lounge lets the corporate visitors be right behind the players bench, and even allow for some possible interaction with players. Next, the park is clearly having difficulty finding naming rights, even representing two different team properties. The constant battle between the teams, and high price tag most likely contribute to this issue. Finally, the stadium looks great to be the first cold weather Super Bowl stadium. I have been a proponent of cold weather Super Bowls for a long time, and I believe the New Meadowlands Stadium will put on a great show.
Next article: State of the NBA
New Meadowlands Stadium is extremely unique in that it hosts two different football teams at the same time. This makes it equivalent to Basketball's Staples Center. There have been widely publicized issues between the Jets and Giants, and who should be considered the majority franchise. Regardless of fan opinion, the Giants were always known in the old stadium more prominently than the Jets because they played in the stadium before the Jets. Now, with the Stadium hosting hundreds of different events every year with different sports and teams, it seems that the Stadium belongs only to the city of New York.
Although the virtual tour is being adjusted and is currently not available on the website, I saw a video rendering of it closer to the time it opened. There were a few things that stuck out to me. One, the stadium architecture was built considering consumer flow in mind. With better parking lots, more entry gates to the stadium, wider walker lanes, and bigger in-stadium lounges, it is clear that comfort was a huge focal point. Along with the wonderful suites, and the extremely cool field level VIP Lounge, people should be able to be very comfortable in the stadium. The VIP Lounge lets the corporate visitors be right behind the players bench, and even allow for some possible interaction with players. Next, the park is clearly having difficulty finding naming rights, even representing two different team properties. The constant battle between the teams, and high price tag most likely contribute to this issue. Finally, the stadium looks great to be the first cold weather Super Bowl stadium. I have been a proponent of cold weather Super Bowls for a long time, and I believe the New Meadowlands Stadium will put on a great show.
Next article: State of the NBA
Oct 16, 2010
PGA and GE?
In today's corporate partnership landscape, all the leagues are competing with one another for sponsorship dollars. Currently, the Professional Golf Association (PGA) is currently negotiating a deal with GE, the international company that deals with innovation in media, electricity, and other areas. The present sponsor of the league's development league is Nationwide, but they have notified the league that they will not be renewing their deal.
The PGA is struggling right now with the decline of Tiger Woods. Although Woods is back playing tournaments, he has yet to return to his dominant form before his divorce controversy. This International deal would provide the PGA with some positive press. GE, being an extremely well-known and globally successful company, would continue its push into sports sponsorship. Their only sports sponsorship thus far has been with the Olympics. The PGA will benefit from GE's image, and GE will get an international professional sporting league with a higher income target market.
This potential bright spot for the league will hopefully come true, and GE will probably continue its push into sports. Good news is great, because the LPGA just reduced the price in hosting a tournament because of their financial trouble.
Next article: Meadowlands Stadium.
The PGA is struggling right now with the decline of Tiger Woods. Although Woods is back playing tournaments, he has yet to return to his dominant form before his divorce controversy. This International deal would provide the PGA with some positive press. GE, being an extremely well-known and globally successful company, would continue its push into sports sponsorship. Their only sports sponsorship thus far has been with the Olympics. The PGA will benefit from GE's image, and GE will get an international professional sporting league with a higher income target market.
This potential bright spot for the league will hopefully come true, and GE will probably continue its push into sports. Good news is great, because the LPGA just reduced the price in hosting a tournament because of their financial trouble.
Next article: Meadowlands Stadium.
FanVision - NFL Handheld Machines
The Miami Dolphins, before this NFL season, unveiled their new FanVision product. The handheld device allows NFL fans to have further instant replay, statistics, schedules, and other information from both the game they are attending, and others that are currently going on. The idea is that fans will use this device to be further involved in the game, checking statistics, checking different camera angles on instant replays, and making educated opinions about what is going on around them.
12 Teams and 21 NCAA teams have already partnered with the technology for the 2010-2011 season. Fans would pay upwards of $250 to have the product, and it will be allowed in these 33 stadiums. Most notable among the current teams are the University of Michigan, New York Jets, and the Chicago Bears. Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks, although usually an innovator, has openly expressed his doubt on the product, saying that this product will cause the fans to look down during the game, which is a team's worst nightmare when considering signage, jumbotron ads, and the team.
I also have some doubts on the product. Being in the age of the smartphone, where so many people have constant internet and app access, how big of a niche does this product fill? Anyone with a Blackberry, Iphone, Droid or similar product can access most of what FanVision offers without any additional cost. Also, with the amount of fans that can only afford to go to one game a year, this product would be a waste of money. This product appeals to people who become bored during the downtime in Football and Baseball, and season ticket holders who can decrease the price per contest of this product.
Ultimately, I see this product failing. I see the cost being too high, and there not being enough of a niche market. I will certainly keep an eye on it however. Here is the link
Next article: A partnership between the PGA and GE??
12 Teams and 21 NCAA teams have already partnered with the technology for the 2010-2011 season. Fans would pay upwards of $250 to have the product, and it will be allowed in these 33 stadiums. Most notable among the current teams are the University of Michigan, New York Jets, and the Chicago Bears. Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks, although usually an innovator, has openly expressed his doubt on the product, saying that this product will cause the fans to look down during the game, which is a team's worst nightmare when considering signage, jumbotron ads, and the team.
I also have some doubts on the product. Being in the age of the smartphone, where so many people have constant internet and app access, how big of a niche does this product fill? Anyone with a Blackberry, Iphone, Droid or similar product can access most of what FanVision offers without any additional cost. Also, with the amount of fans that can only afford to go to one game a year, this product would be a waste of money. This product appeals to people who become bored during the downtime in Football and Baseball, and season ticket holders who can decrease the price per contest of this product.
Ultimately, I see this product failing. I see the cost being too high, and there not being enough of a niche market. I will certainly keep an eye on it however. Here is the link
Next article: A partnership between the PGA and GE??
Oct 11, 2010
New Amway Arena
Occasionally throughout the semester, I will be posting my reviews of the newest arenas and facilities in professional sports. With the Orlando Magic having just introduced the new Amway Arena the other night, I thought it would be a great place to start.
The old Orlando Magic Arena was unfortunately a miserable venue. Built just twenty years ago, it was known for being uncomfortable, poorly laid out, and just plain ugly. 20 years is not that old for an arena, considering the oldest arena in the NBA is currently the Oracle Arena, built in 1966. Thankfully, the Orlando Magic were able to acquire the funds to build a new arena, as well as acquire naming rights, something that Cowboys Stadium is having a lot of trouble doing. Amway Arena is the perfect example of an arena built with its fan base in mind. There is an entire fan area outside of the arena, a rooftop sky bar, an 180 feet tall LED spiral tower, and a fan plaza. This arena is built with the partying fan in mind. Amway looks like a great place for many different events, such as concerts, basketball, hockey, and arena football.
I do however, have a couple of worries about the arena. First, the brand new practice facility, which looks great, has a wall of windows so that the public can watch. While the players may enjoy having their own private facility, I can imagine a few of the players and coaches objecting to having their practices be public. Second, with all of these great bars and party areas, the security presence is going to have to be massive, especially with a roof top bar. Third, the arena, although not huge in terms of seating at 18,000+, looks a lot bigger than it is. It seems like the seats are stretched back to make room for all different types of events. While that is good for the overall arena, it seems like watching basketball would be hard from any of their nose bleed sections. Hopefully that is just how it appears in pictures.
Overall, Amway arena looks great. Definitely much improved from the previous arena. I would highly recommend the virtual tour here and check it out. For the next facility tour, I will be checking out the New Meadowlands stadium.
The old Orlando Magic Arena was unfortunately a miserable venue. Built just twenty years ago, it was known for being uncomfortable, poorly laid out, and just plain ugly. 20 years is not that old for an arena, considering the oldest arena in the NBA is currently the Oracle Arena, built in 1966. Thankfully, the Orlando Magic were able to acquire the funds to build a new arena, as well as acquire naming rights, something that Cowboys Stadium is having a lot of trouble doing. Amway Arena is the perfect example of an arena built with its fan base in mind. There is an entire fan area outside of the arena, a rooftop sky bar, an 180 feet tall LED spiral tower, and a fan plaza. This arena is built with the partying fan in mind. Amway looks like a great place for many different events, such as concerts, basketball, hockey, and arena football.
I do however, have a couple of worries about the arena. First, the brand new practice facility, which looks great, has a wall of windows so that the public can watch. While the players may enjoy having their own private facility, I can imagine a few of the players and coaches objecting to having their practices be public. Second, with all of these great bars and party areas, the security presence is going to have to be massive, especially with a roof top bar. Third, the arena, although not huge in terms of seating at 18,000+, looks a lot bigger than it is. It seems like the seats are stretched back to make room for all different types of events. While that is good for the overall arena, it seems like watching basketball would be hard from any of their nose bleed sections. Hopefully that is just how it appears in pictures.
Overall, Amway arena looks great. Definitely much improved from the previous arena. I would highly recommend the virtual tour here and check it out. For the next facility tour, I will be checking out the New Meadowlands stadium.
Oct 10, 2010
Player Salaries
One of the biggest frustrations people have with professional sports are the enormous player contracts that teams hand out. With all of the extremely meaningful professions out there, such as doctors, teachers, and police officers, how are athletes the ones making millions of dollars? I have heard this argument over and over again. While there is truth to it, I do not completely agree with the entire argument. Value, defined in economic terms, is defined as what people are willing to pay for. The Indianapolis Colts currently league the NFL in attendance percentage with 106.8%. Their average ticket price is currently $86.5, not including club seats. Add on at least $15 for parking, and $15 for food, and the average person is dishing out almost $120 per game. Looking again at the average attendance, only one team is below 80% attendance, the Oakland Raiders. Ticket money, for every league but the NFL, is the highest revenue source, and therefore the attending fans are the ones who end up paying for the player salaries.
However, with each of the other leagues dropping slightly in attendance, the price of professional sports is obviously getting high. Here are some possible solutions to these problems:
Rookie Contract Limits: This is being worked on in the NFL, and rightly so. The NFL has huge rookie contracts, exponentially higher than any other sport. These young players have never played at the professional level, and are therefore very likely to fail at this level. Having rookie contract limits would protect teams, and force rookies to work harder in their professional preparation.
Player Development Improvements: Every team in every sport is starting to develop their player development program more seriously than they have in the past. I still do not believe that Money Management is stressed enough because we still hear so many players ending up bankrupt.
Lower contract totals, but higher guaranteed money: One of the biggest arguments for higher player salaries is the medical expenses that the players have, especially when they retire. If the overall contract totals were lower, but the players were guaranteed more money, they could still take care of their bodies and families, but overall player salaries would go down.
Guaranteed contracts: Currently in the NFL, players can be cut whenever, regardless of what their contract status is. If teams had to spend more time evaluating players because they were held accountable, then hopefully fans would be more willing to come to games because of the more consistent competition.
As always, feedback appreciated.
However, with each of the other leagues dropping slightly in attendance, the price of professional sports is obviously getting high. Here are some possible solutions to these problems:
Rookie Contract Limits: This is being worked on in the NFL, and rightly so. The NFL has huge rookie contracts, exponentially higher than any other sport. These young players have never played at the professional level, and are therefore very likely to fail at this level. Having rookie contract limits would protect teams, and force rookies to work harder in their professional preparation.
Player Development Improvements: Every team in every sport is starting to develop their player development program more seriously than they have in the past. I still do not believe that Money Management is stressed enough because we still hear so many players ending up bankrupt.
Lower contract totals, but higher guaranteed money: One of the biggest arguments for higher player salaries is the medical expenses that the players have, especially when they retire. If the overall contract totals were lower, but the players were guaranteed more money, they could still take care of their bodies and families, but overall player salaries would go down.
Guaranteed contracts: Currently in the NFL, players can be cut whenever, regardless of what their contract status is. If teams had to spend more time evaluating players because they were held accountable, then hopefully fans would be more willing to come to games because of the more consistent competition.
As always, feedback appreciated.
Oct 4, 2010
Streaming Live Content
Several reports from the Sports Business Journal (would include the link, but you cannot read it without a paid membership)indicate that the National Hockey League (NHL) is prepared to launch its service of live streaming online games to the public. Called "Gamecenter", the service will be available to those outside of the team's local market. Professional teams' marketing rights are the 75 mile radius from the arena, and anywhere outside of that is a national market. The service will be blacked out to the local market, and only broadcast outside of it. The announced cost is 19.95 per month, or a single payment of $160 for the season. This product will be targeted to people living outside of their team's market, and many people are predicting the service to succeed.
What's interesting about the NHL product, and why I will be watching closely, is that the National Basketball Association (NBA)tried a similar free service where they broadcast games online. It failed miserably. Miserable ratings along with people not finding a need for it caused it to fail. The Portland Trailblazers are the only team who is still trying the service, reducing the service to a mini-plan of exciting games for those outside the market. Hopefully it works for them, but many professionals are skeptical of its success.
Links: https://gamecenter.nhl.com/nhlgc/secure/gclsignup - Official website
http://newteevee.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/gcl-screen-3.jpg - Screen shot
What's interesting about the NHL product, and why I will be watching closely, is that the National Basketball Association (NBA)tried a similar free service where they broadcast games online. It failed miserably. Miserable ratings along with people not finding a need for it caused it to fail. The Portland Trailblazers are the only team who is still trying the service, reducing the service to a mini-plan of exciting games for those outside the market. Hopefully it works for them, but many professionals are skeptical of its success.
Links: https://gamecenter.nhl.com/nhlgc/secure/gclsignup - Official website
http://newteevee.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/gcl-screen-3.jpg - Screen shot
Oct 3, 2010
First Business of Sports Blog!
Hey everyone,
This is the first post for my "Business of Sport" blog. This blog is part of a project for my PR & the Internet course. You can also follow me on Facebook under Steve Thiel, and my Twitter under Steel6623. I chose the Business of Sport topic because that industry is one of my passions. I am a Sport Management major currently interning for the Cleveland Cavaliers in Marketing. I have also interned for the Boston Celtics, Cape Cod Baseball League - Orleans Firebirds, and the B-W Athletic Department. My background as a fan is growing up in the Boston area, so naturally I am a Boston sports fan through and through. However, this blog is intended to be about the industry of Sports as a whole, and not about a specific market or team. As a fan, my favorite sports are in this order: Football, Basketball, Baseball, College Football, College Basketball, Hockey, Golf. As a hopeful professional sports employee, I hope to work in basketball, football, or baseball. Hopefully this provides a solid background on me so that you as readers will understand where I am coming from. Any questions or topic requests can be either posted on my Facebook wall or tweeted to me.
Enjoy!
Upcoming topics will involve new technology, league holdouts, and new facilities.
This is the first post for my "Business of Sport" blog. This blog is part of a project for my PR & the Internet course. You can also follow me on Facebook under Steve Thiel, and my Twitter under Steel6623. I chose the Business of Sport topic because that industry is one of my passions. I am a Sport Management major currently interning for the Cleveland Cavaliers in Marketing. I have also interned for the Boston Celtics, Cape Cod Baseball League - Orleans Firebirds, and the B-W Athletic Department. My background as a fan is growing up in the Boston area, so naturally I am a Boston sports fan through and through. However, this blog is intended to be about the industry of Sports as a whole, and not about a specific market or team. As a fan, my favorite sports are in this order: Football, Basketball, Baseball, College Football, College Basketball, Hockey, Golf. As a hopeful professional sports employee, I hope to work in basketball, football, or baseball. Hopefully this provides a solid background on me so that you as readers will understand where I am coming from. Any questions or topic requests can be either posted on my Facebook wall or tweeted to me.
Enjoy!
Upcoming topics will involve new technology, league holdouts, and new facilities.
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