Eric on The Road

Journeys into the offbeat, off the beaten path, overlooked and forgotten - by Eric Model

Friday, February 08, 2008

Pro Sports Today: The Business of Naming Rights and Corporate Boxes (NY Times)

From The New York Times:

The old Yankee Stadium cost Jacob Ruppert and Tillinghast Huston $2.5 million to build and $100 million (or so) for the city to rebuild. The cost to replace it is now about $1.2 billion.

The new ball park is highlighted by space dedicated to the wealthiest’s pursuits in suites and pampered club areas. A two-level Legends Suite Club will serve the 1,800 ticket holders who will sit closest to the field in 1,800 cushioned seats extending along the baselines from home plate.

"Hopefully, when ticket prices are announced, the wealthiest in their premium areas will subsidize the regular Joes", wrote Richard Sandomir in The New York Times.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/08/sports/baseball/08sandomir.html?ref=todayspaper

On the same page is found an article describing a remodeling of some sections of New York's Madison Square Garden in an effort to squeeze out a few (million) extra dollars from its corporate clients.

Marc Ganis, the president of SportsCorp, a sports business consulting firm, said the changes (Naming Rights, Corporate Boxes etc.) were part of the upscaling of live sports, a trend that started 20 years ago and shows no signs of abating.

That business reality is changing the fan experience, even in places like the Garden, which is 40 years old but still caters to its increasingly suit-wearing, deal-making crowd by offering sushi, Kobe beef hot dogs and nightclub-style bars.

“A lot of regular fans are getting shut out of season tickets,” Ganis said. “It is the unfortunate downside of having to generate so much revenue to pay player salaries.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/08/sports/08garden.html?_r=1&ref=todayspaper&oref=slogin

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