duncan228
11-29-2009, 06:50 PM
Does Football Cost Too Much? (http://www.parade.com/news/2009/11/29-does-football-cost-too-much.html)
by Sally Jenkins
http://www.parade.com/images/-v4/news/2009/1129/default-football-too-expensive.jpg
The Dallas Cowboys in their new $1.15 billion home.
I'm in Arlington, Tex., standing outside the NFL's newest stadium, the state-of-the-art home of the Dallas Cowboys. With its $1.15 billion price tag, Cowboys Stadium represents the best and worst of today's NFL experience. The arena itself is a technological marvel of glass and steel. But in order to enjoy it, fans need to dig deep into their wallets--make that bank accounts. While the average cost of attending an NFL game for a family of four is $412.64, it's a staggering $758.58 to watch the Cowboys. (That figure includes tickets and drinks for four people, as well as a couple of caps.)
Has the NFL gotten so overpriced that it's inaccessible to most fans? And is seeing a game in person worth the trouble and expense, or is it just as good to stay home with a satellite hook-up and a big TV?
I decided to find out by going to a game. My natural choice was "America's Team," the Cowboys, playing their first season in a facility that is likely to become the NFL standard. I went to Ticketmaster and clicked on "Cheapest available" seats for the Nov. 1 contest between the Cowboys and the Seattle Seahawks. I was offered the uppermost deck in the end zone at $129. Then I clicked on "Best available," which found me a seat in the second-highest tier (25 rows from the top), with a view of the 10-yard line, for $239. I purchased that ticket.
By contrast, many spectators at the first pro-football games in the U.S. went for free. The early stadiums had open end zones where people could watch without tickets, and often the "deadheads"--the nickname for those fans--outnumbered the paying audiences. With 10 franchises in cities like St. Louis and Detroit, the modern NFL began to take shape in 1934. The sport gradually won Americans' hearts, and by 1965, a Harris Poll found that football had surpassed baseball in popularity.
"The NFL became successful by becoming the people's game," says historian Michael Oriard, author of Brand NFL. "It built on a working-class population and expanded into the middle class until it achieved respectability."
In keeping with the game's humble origins, I searched for public transportation to go from Dallas to the Cowboys game. There was none. Fortunately, parking is plentiful, so I drove in. A space in Lot B, around a quarter mile from the stadium, ran $50. Lot A, closer by the distance of a first down, was $60. I chose the $50 spot and took a pleasant 10-minute stroll to the game.
On my first view of the arena, it seemed worth the money I'd spent. Truly awe-inspiring, Cowboys Stadium is the NFL's largest dome, with a capacity of 110,000. Two steel arches lunge into the sky over massive blocks of white stone and green glass. Thanks to the arches, the roof floats high above, free of columns, offering every seat a panoramic view. The centerpiece is the world's largest high-def jumbotron--a screen that is 160 feet wide and 72 feet high.
By the time I made it to my seat, I was out almost $100. A sweatshirt was $50, a T-shirt $22, a chicken sandwich $8, french fries $5, and a soda $6. However, I opted to skip the $14 margarita (called a Cowboyrita) and $10 bucket of popcorn.
Ticket prices for a Cowboys game run from $59 seats located in the arena's uppermost reaches to $500,000 luxury boxes. Between the two extremes are season tickets. Their holders shell out for "personal seat licenses," multiyear commitments that go for $2000 to $150,000. David, a contractor who lives in Maryland, sat next to me. He had paid $24,000 for 30-year rights to two seats in the upper tier and an additional $2500 per season for the seats themselves. And he was glad to do it. "My son will have them," he said. "Not only can you see everything, but it's clean and family-oriented."
The team really tried to deliver a thrilling time to its customers. By kickoff, flames shot from 3000 flat-screen TVs until the entire venue seemed alive. We saw music videos, pregame interviews, and highlights from past games. A locker-room cam showed players chatting and warming up. The sound was immense and intergalactic. Many of the seats, including mine, were padded and had drink holders. The floors had been polished to a skating-rink sheen and were swept perpetually by armies of attendants.
There is one genuinely cheap seat in the house--although it isn't really a seat. I spoke to Gary, a Houston engineer, who was at the game with his daughter. He'd gone to the box office that morning and asked, "What are the cheapest seats left between the 20-yard lines?" The vendor said $239, but he also explained the party-pass option--$29 for standing room on platforms in the end zone. Gary took two and parked at a remote lot for $15.
He called it a good deal, even as he sipped an $8 beer. "I like the experience," he said. "It's as close as you can get to going to a concert." The drawback, he added, was that they had to stand right at the railing to see and were afraid to leave their spots and lose them.
In return for our efforts, all of us ended up getting an exultant afternoon of football. After country star Jessie James sang the national anthem, we watched the Cowboys beat the Seahawks 38-17.
A game at Cowboys Stadium attempts to please its entire audience, from the people with party passes to the affluent in their windowed boxes. But how long and in how many cities can the NFL retain both? If Cowboys Stadium is the trendsetter, the NFL is moving toward a day when only the wealthiest fans can afford to watch in person.
For now, the league seems to be maintaining its mass appeal. While pro-basketball and -baseball games are cheaper to attend, football remains the most popular sport in North America. And NFL officials state that they have no intention of turning their backs on their supporters. "Those working-class people who helped build the game have to be able to go to games," says Mark Waller, chief marketing officer for the NFL. "We can't ever lose sight of the fans who made us what we are."
When I walked out of Cowboys Stadium that evening, the crowd was still being enthusiastically entertained. Postgame interviews were piped over loudspeakers, and attendants handed out coupons for free french fries and tacos from local fast-food chains. A live band serenaded the plaza with a version of the Jackson 5's "I Want You Back" that was so energetic it started a dance party. As hard as I looked, I couldn't see a single dissatisfied face.
by Sally Jenkins
http://www.parade.com/images/-v4/news/2009/1129/default-football-too-expensive.jpg
The Dallas Cowboys in their new $1.15 billion home.
I'm in Arlington, Tex., standing outside the NFL's newest stadium, the state-of-the-art home of the Dallas Cowboys. With its $1.15 billion price tag, Cowboys Stadium represents the best and worst of today's NFL experience. The arena itself is a technological marvel of glass and steel. But in order to enjoy it, fans need to dig deep into their wallets--make that bank accounts. While the average cost of attending an NFL game for a family of four is $412.64, it's a staggering $758.58 to watch the Cowboys. (That figure includes tickets and drinks for four people, as well as a couple of caps.)
Has the NFL gotten so overpriced that it's inaccessible to most fans? And is seeing a game in person worth the trouble and expense, or is it just as good to stay home with a satellite hook-up and a big TV?
I decided to find out by going to a game. My natural choice was "America's Team," the Cowboys, playing their first season in a facility that is likely to become the NFL standard. I went to Ticketmaster and clicked on "Cheapest available" seats for the Nov. 1 contest between the Cowboys and the Seattle Seahawks. I was offered the uppermost deck in the end zone at $129. Then I clicked on "Best available," which found me a seat in the second-highest tier (25 rows from the top), with a view of the 10-yard line, for $239. I purchased that ticket.
By contrast, many spectators at the first pro-football games in the U.S. went for free. The early stadiums had open end zones where people could watch without tickets, and often the "deadheads"--the nickname for those fans--outnumbered the paying audiences. With 10 franchises in cities like St. Louis and Detroit, the modern NFL began to take shape in 1934. The sport gradually won Americans' hearts, and by 1965, a Harris Poll found that football had surpassed baseball in popularity.
"The NFL became successful by becoming the people's game," says historian Michael Oriard, author of Brand NFL. "It built on a working-class population and expanded into the middle class until it achieved respectability."
In keeping with the game's humble origins, I searched for public transportation to go from Dallas to the Cowboys game. There was none. Fortunately, parking is plentiful, so I drove in. A space in Lot B, around a quarter mile from the stadium, ran $50. Lot A, closer by the distance of a first down, was $60. I chose the $50 spot and took a pleasant 10-minute stroll to the game.
On my first view of the arena, it seemed worth the money I'd spent. Truly awe-inspiring, Cowboys Stadium is the NFL's largest dome, with a capacity of 110,000. Two steel arches lunge into the sky over massive blocks of white stone and green glass. Thanks to the arches, the roof floats high above, free of columns, offering every seat a panoramic view. The centerpiece is the world's largest high-def jumbotron--a screen that is 160 feet wide and 72 feet high.
By the time I made it to my seat, I was out almost $100. A sweatshirt was $50, a T-shirt $22, a chicken sandwich $8, french fries $5, and a soda $6. However, I opted to skip the $14 margarita (called a Cowboyrita) and $10 bucket of popcorn.
Ticket prices for a Cowboys game run from $59 seats located in the arena's uppermost reaches to $500,000 luxury boxes. Between the two extremes are season tickets. Their holders shell out for "personal seat licenses," multiyear commitments that go for $2000 to $150,000. David, a contractor who lives in Maryland, sat next to me. He had paid $24,000 for 30-year rights to two seats in the upper tier and an additional $2500 per season for the seats themselves. And he was glad to do it. "My son will have them," he said. "Not only can you see everything, but it's clean and family-oriented."
The team really tried to deliver a thrilling time to its customers. By kickoff, flames shot from 3000 flat-screen TVs until the entire venue seemed alive. We saw music videos, pregame interviews, and highlights from past games. A locker-room cam showed players chatting and warming up. The sound was immense and intergalactic. Many of the seats, including mine, were padded and had drink holders. The floors had been polished to a skating-rink sheen and were swept perpetually by armies of attendants.
There is one genuinely cheap seat in the house--although it isn't really a seat. I spoke to Gary, a Houston engineer, who was at the game with his daughter. He'd gone to the box office that morning and asked, "What are the cheapest seats left between the 20-yard lines?" The vendor said $239, but he also explained the party-pass option--$29 for standing room on platforms in the end zone. Gary took two and parked at a remote lot for $15.
He called it a good deal, even as he sipped an $8 beer. "I like the experience," he said. "It's as close as you can get to going to a concert." The drawback, he added, was that they had to stand right at the railing to see and were afraid to leave their spots and lose them.
In return for our efforts, all of us ended up getting an exultant afternoon of football. After country star Jessie James sang the national anthem, we watched the Cowboys beat the Seahawks 38-17.
A game at Cowboys Stadium attempts to please its entire audience, from the people with party passes to the affluent in their windowed boxes. But how long and in how many cities can the NFL retain both? If Cowboys Stadium is the trendsetter, the NFL is moving toward a day when only the wealthiest fans can afford to watch in person.
For now, the league seems to be maintaining its mass appeal. While pro-basketball and -baseball games are cheaper to attend, football remains the most popular sport in North America. And NFL officials state that they have no intention of turning their backs on their supporters. "Those working-class people who helped build the game have to be able to go to games," says Mark Waller, chief marketing officer for the NFL. "We can't ever lose sight of the fans who made us what we are."
When I walked out of Cowboys Stadium that evening, the crowd was still being enthusiastically entertained. Postgame interviews were piped over loudspeakers, and attendants handed out coupons for free french fries and tacos from local fast-food chains. A live band serenaded the plaza with a version of the Jackson 5's "I Want You Back" that was so energetic it started a dance party. As hard as I looked, I couldn't see a single dissatisfied face.