01 cover sbi 152.indd - FIFA/CIES International University Network

AGENDA
SHORTSTOP
ESA: The European Sponsorship
Association (ESA) launched a
23-page guide for small sports
rights-holders and newcomers to
sponsorship looking to take their
first steps into the industry.
AF1: Arena Football One (AF1),
the indoor American Football
league founded in 2009 to replace
the indefinitely suspended Arena
Football League (AFL), submitted
a formal offer to purchase the
assets of the AFL. Formed in 2009,
the coast-to-coast AF1 League will
commence its inaugural season in
the spring of 2010.
SOCHI 2014: The organisers of
the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi
published an environmental
strategy drawn up in conjunction
with the United Nations
Environment Programme (UNEP)
and the Russian Government. The
organisers say the strategy will
see the natural environment in the
region surrounding Sochi not just
protected, but enhanced.
AUSTRALIA: An independent
review of Olympic sport in Australia
commissioned by the government
said the focus on winning Olympic
medals was hitting participation
rates and choking funding need by
for grassroots sports.
EHF: Austria-based betting
company bet-at-home.com
agreed a new deal to be an official
partner of the European Handball
Federation’s (EHF) European
Handball Championships taking
place in Austria in 2010.
USL: Seven football clubs
previously part of US professional
league the United Soccer Leagues
broke away to form a new league
and begun seeking recognition
from football authorities.
NFL: The 80,000-seat Silverdome
stadium in Pontiac, Michigan, which
cost more than $55 million to build
in 1975, has been sold at auction
for $583,000 by the debt-ridden
city authorities which own it. The
stadium is the former home of the
National Football League’s Detroit
Lions, who left for a new stadium in
downtown Detroit in 2002, and once
hosted the Super Bowl.
EXCEPTION PROVES THE RULE
Barry Wilner on success breeding success in the NHL this year, according to the Forbes
annual valuation. All except for the team at the top of the money rankings.
IT PAYS TO BE an original
member of the National Hockey
League. Big time.
The Original Six are among the
seven most valuable franchises
in the NHL, according to Forbes’
annual rankings. Only the
Philadelphia Flyers, who joined
the league in the first wave of
expansion in 1967, broke up the
old boys club.
For the fourth straight year,
the Toronto Maple Leafs are on
top, which is quite impressive
considering they have not made the
playoffs in four years and don’t look
likely to make them this season.
According to Forbes, they are
worth $470 million, an increase of
5 per cent over last year and far in
front of the New York Rangers at
$416 million, up just 1 per cent.
The Montreal Canadiens are
third ($339 million), followed by
the Detroit Red Wings
($337 million), Philadelphia
($273 million), the Boston Bruins
($271 million) and the Chicago
Blackhawks ($258 million).
Chicago’s rise is the most
noteworthy. The Blackhawks have
been tailenders on the ice for much
of the decade, which damaged
their overall worth. But aggressive
marketing by owner Rocky Wirtz
and strong drafting have made
the Blackhawks so attractive that
they regularly sell out the United
Center. And they will be a Stanley
Cup contender for the 2009-10
season, having made the Western
Conference final last spring.
2009 NHL VALUES
TEAM
“The common denominator is to
win and we wanted to move the
organisation ahead,” Wirtz has said.
“I see us perennially going to the
playoffs and, once we get there,
anything can happen.”
What has happened in the past
year is the NHL’s biggest rise in
value, up 26 per cent.
The next biggest increase is by
the Washington Capitals, up 15 per
cent to $183 million.
Of the top 10 franchises - Dallas
is eighth ($246 million), Vancouver
ninth ($239 million) and New Jersey
10th ($223 million) - two actually
decreased in value: the Flyers and the
Stars, who dropped by 10 per cent.
Winning the Stanley Cup did not
catapult the Pittsburgh Penguins
into the Top Ten. They are 11th at
$222 million, but that is a
14-per-cent-increase in value,
which certainly has to do with
being the champions. Look for the
Penguins to move up further next
Toronto Maple Leafs top the money table - Getty Images Sport
2009 Value
(in millions)
One-Year
Change (%)
Revenues
(in millions)
Toronto 470 +5 168
NY Rangers 416 +1 139
Montreal 339 +2 130
Detroit 337 +11 130
Philadelphia 273 -1 101
Boston 271 +3 108
Chicago 258 +26 108
Dallas 246 -10 97
Vancouver 239 +1 109
New Jersey 223 0 97
League Averages 223 1 94
year when their new arena opens.
New Jersey’s value, which is the
same as in 2008, is also the leaguewide
average, a slight increase over
the $220 million of last year.
By contrast, the average value of
an National Football League team
this year is $1.042 billion, and the
lowest-ranked team, the Oakland
Raiders, are worth $797 million,
dwarfing the NHL’s Maple Leafs.
The Toronto team is also top in
terms of operating income, with
$78.9 million, more than double
the $31.3 million for runners-up,
the Canadiens. Toronto revenues
were also top, at $168 million,
followed by the Rangers at
$139 million. At the other end
of Forbes’ chart are the Phoenix
Coyotes. Their ownership issues,
which have existed for years and
dragged on for months in the
courts, drop their worth to $138
million. Stunningly, that is only 3
per cent down on last season.
10 SportBusiness International • No.152 • 12.09