Orioles Owner Peter Angelos held a 3-hour meeting Friday
with the trustees selling the Buccaneers. Angelos described the
meeting as "very positive," but Bucs officials downplayed it as
"one of a dozen or so introductory exchanges they expect to hold"
with bidders. Angelos and Bucs officials "declined to disclose
the specifics" of their talks (Jon Morgan, Baltimore SUN, 11/19).
Columnist Vito Stellino notes, with the election of Democrat
Parris Glendening as MD Governor, the funding for a new football
stadium should stay in place, leaving Baltimore remaining as a
"player in the franchise game" (Baltimore SUN, 11/20).
WHY BUY AN NFL TEAM? In St. Pete, Robert Keefe lists
reasons why buying an NFL franchise is a good investment. 1)
There is "relatively" very little risk. 2) "While sports teams
may not be the best investment in the short term ... they are
extraordinary investments in the long term, after they are
resold." 3) "They're not as good as they used to be, but sports
teams can still be fair tax shelters." 4) As for supply,
"football teams are as rare as fine gems, regardless of their
quality." As for the Bucs, besides the guaranteed revenue they
receive from the league from TV revenue, the team has "one of the
best leases of any sports franchise" (ST. PETERSBURG TIMES,
11/21).
