"Money makes the world go 'round." Sports could not exist without the presence of money. You have high paid athletes asking for multi-million dollar contacts, while at the same time you have doctors not even making close to that amount. There are corporations buying out sports teams, buying stadiums, and buying everything that has to do with sports. Someone may ask why they do this. Sports are one of the most profitable industries in the world. Everyone wants to get their hand on a piece of the action. Those individuals and industries that spend hundreds of millions of dollars on these sports teams are hoping to make a profit, but it may be an indirect profit. It could be a profit for the sports club, or it could be a promotion for another organization (i.e. Rupert Murdoch, FOX). The economics involved with sports has drastically changed over the last ten years. In the United States, we spend about 13% of all money on sports and entertainment. Sports has obviously done its job; entertained and drained money out of our pockets.
A young boy goes up to his mother and says, "Mommy! I want to be a baseball player!" If this was said in 1930, the boy's mother probably would have told the boy, "That's not future for you! You need to get a real job and make good money." If this was said in 1999, the boy's mother probably would have said, "Let's go to the store and buy you a baseball glove so you can start to practice." It is visible to every sports fan that in the past few decades, sports has undergone a whole new renovation. It isn't just an activity that is played for fun. It is a business in which owner and players attempt to coincide. It is a business where TV controls fan interest. It is also a business that affects many people's lives, both monetary and living aspects. There are many aspects that are involved with the economics of sport. Each one having unique qualities that adds to the greatest source of entertainment.
Economics is the study of how best to allocate scarce resources throughout an entire market. Economics affect our lives on a daily basis, whether it is on a business level or a personal level.
Economic Theory Labor market theory is one of the most integral economic theories needed to dissect the inefficiencies in professional sports. Looking first at the type of market these leagues function in, one can see that they do not necessarily meet all the criteria that a competitive market requires. The big four sports leagues in the US have a set number of teams, which creates barriers to entry. Only when an expansion is agreed upon by the league, such as NHL has done for the upcoming season, are teams allowed to enter, and even then, it is limited to a maximum of a few teams in recent history. Additionally, the league makes it virtually impossible to exit, as selling a team is the closest they come to exiting the market.
Throughout the years sports have become more popular in our society. The average American watches at least one of the major sports if not more, but how do these professional sports affect our economy? Many believe that they can bring more profit and jobs to an economy, but is that really the case, or do taxpayers spend a lot of money for a sports team that does not draw in the revenue it is suppose to?
Professional sports, like most of our popular culture, can be understood only partly by through its exiting plays and tremendous athletes. Baseball and football most of all are not only games anymore but also hardcore businesses. As businesses, sports leagues can be as conniving, deceitful, and manipulative as any other businesses in the world. No matter what the circumstances are, it seems that Politicians are always some how right around the corner from the world of sports. These Politicians look to exploit both the cultural and the economic dimensions of the sports for their own purposes. This is what is known in the sports industry as “playing the field”.
Whether it's Mark McGwire breaking the home run record, Terell Davis breaking the rushing record, or superstars retiring, Americans have always had a fascination with sports. Sports have provided entertainment even before radio or television. Sports provided many things for the fans that watched them. Sports allowed communities to grow stronger and provided great athletes to look up to. With the arrival of television sports took on a whole new meaning. Being able to watch a game together gave the community a new way to bond, giving individuals a visual image of their favorite athletes. The television also opened up the industry of commercialization. Sports, televison, and merchandising on television became a combination that continues even today.The community in the 1950's was like one big family. Children played in the streets, everyone knew everyone else on the block, and sports created unbreakable bonds. Children and their fathers, neighbors, and even complete strangers could always talk about sports. As televison began to fill American homes, neighbors flocked to each others house to watch different events. Even neighbors who loved different sides crowded around the television to watch the event. Whether it was baseball, wrestling, golf, roller derby, or another sport, television allowed the community to grow closer. It is estimated that one sporting event drew an audience of 150,000 viewers. This is remarkable considering there was only about 5,000 television sets in American homes. That is about 30 people per set! Sports and television did more than just bring the community closer together. Sports on television became so popular that merchandising became a booming business. Whether at a game or sitting in the living room, authentic merchandise was a must for any fan. Much like the merchandise in Karal Ann Marlings book As Seen On TV, the merchandising industry exploited the people.
You see sports everywhere, on your TV and even your local park. The value of sports in the average American is astronomical, sports is a major priority in people’s life. Sports teaches young kids how to be successful (and not successful) at life. There is so much that goes into sports that people who never have played will never understand. With each sport there is specific skill that one must master to be good, and with that takes hours and hours of hard work. You can talk about a certain individual’s skill and capabilities that make him great, but the real value of sports lies within a person. Sports creates determination and a competiveness that can be used in other areas of life, not just sports. There are millions of kids who attempt to become professional athletes but as the level of competition increases the number of athletes decreases, very few of them ever becoming a professional athlete but they are able to take what they have learned from sports into different professions in life. When a kid spends hours in the backyard perfecting his swing it can translate to the kid spending hours of hard work in his job. Companies and business like to hire ex-athletes because they already know what kind of person they are, hardworking and
When looking into the history of our culture, there are many subtopics that fall under the word, “history.” Topics such as arts and literature, food, and media fall into place. Among these topics reside sports. Since the beginning of time, sports have persisted as an activity intertwined with the daily life of people. Whether it is a pick-up game of football in the backyard, or catching an evening game at the local stadium, sports have become the national pastime. According to Marcus Jansen of the Sign Post, more specifically, baseball is America’s national pastime, competing with other sports (Jansen 1). Providing the entertainment that Americans pay top dollar for, live the role models, superstars, and celebrities that put on a jersey as their job. As said in an article by Lucas Reilly, Americans spend close to $25.4 billion dollars on professional sports (Reilly 4). The people that many children want to be when they grow up are not the firefighters or astronauts told about in bed time stories. These dream jobs or fantasies have become swinging a bat or tossing a football in front of millions of screaming fans. When asked why so many dream of having such job, the majority will respond with a salary related answer. In today’s day and age, the average athlete is paid more than our own president. The cold hard facts show that in professional sports, the circulation of money is endless. Certain teams in professional baseball and football are worth over millions of dollars. Consequently, the teams who are worth more are able to spend more. The issue that arises with this philosophy is virtually how much more? League managers, team owners and other sports officials have sought out a solution to the surfacing problem. Is it fair to let...
Sports bring friends, family and our country together more so than political debates or even church on Sunday. Whether it be football, basketball, baseball or everything in between everyone has their favorite team that they cheer for regardless if they are the shits or number one. Americans will have gatherings of their friends every week of the season to watch games and “support” their teams from hundreds of miles away. Sports have an enormous impact on our society in every way shape and form, whether it is kids pretending to be their favorite super star while playing in the yard or it is co-workers participating in fantasy sports or making March Madness brackets, but which is the most entertaining, is it the professionals that are paid millions of dollars to play or college kids struggling to get by while trying to earn an education?
The Current Scale and the Economic Importance of the Sports Industry Over 100 years ago the scale of the sports industry has increased gradually. Not all sports have followed in the same path or footsteps. A slow increasing level of control has been affecting the sports industry since 1960Â’s. Mainly standardisation and commodification of sport. More money has been put into the industry equivalent with the efforts that the sports organisations have put in, to increase their potential at the professional end of the scale, and the voluntary end they remain sustainable.
athletes life, there is nothing they would want to do more than play their sport,
Greed and the Death of Professional Sports "Show me the money," screamed Rod. "C'mon Jerry, show me the money!" We vividly remember this famous line from the hit movie, Jerry Maguire. The greedy football player, Rod Tidwell, screams these unforgettable lines trying to convince his agent that he will not settle for any less than a top dollar salary as the flashy Arizona Cardinal wide receiver. This scene exemplifies what has happened to professional sports in recent years.
It is the study of resource allocation, distribution and consumption, of capital and investment, and of the management of the factors of production. (http://wikitionary.org/wiki/economics)
Abstract: Society is affected every day by many different kinds of sports. These sports often govern society's way of life. People all over the nation turn their TVs to sporting events, such as golf, during the weekends. Scott Stossel states that "more than six million Americans enjoy watching golf on the weekends." Parents use sports as a teaching tool for their children. Kids learn teamwork and discipline from team sports programs and sports have also helped many students with their grades. Kids who want to compete in school sports are taught to keep their grades up or they won't be able to play, but the greedy coaches and schools often look around grades to keep their "star athletes" in the games. Adults have been affected by sports in their bank accounts. Tax increases for funding a new stadium, golf course and even school programs have hurt the middle class Americans. Sports have taken control of small communities and soon will take control of society
Sports are an important part of our world. Take a look at any newspaper, listen to any radio, or watch TV for any length of time and there will surely be some sports information that is being passed along. The fact that sports figures get paid salaries that teachers can only dream about lets us know where our priorities lie in this society. Sports consume a lot of our time and energy, and because of this, they have great influence in our culture.
A recent article in Readers Digest estimates that most Americans spend at least 13% of their income on sporting events and sport related products. Sports has entertained American people and drained money out of their pockets making sporting events an arena of pure economic activity. It has been proven that Americans will purchase tickets to attend sporting events, but this alone does not create enough revenue to keep sports teams profitable.
Economics is basically the understanding of how different economies function. Economics is the study of how to best allocate scarce resources among competing uses. Scarcity in the economy is the main problem. There are not enough resources to keep up with the demand for them. Within the discipline of economics, there are two areas of study: Micro and Macro Economics.