Despite the Jets' possible $500M price tag,
billionaires "are lining up like planes on a crowded JFK
runway seeking to buy" the team, according to Luke Cyphers
of the N.Y. DAILY NEWS. Cyphers calls the Jets a "lousy
investment" and attributes part of this to the team's lease
at Giants Stadium, which runs through 2008 and calls for it
to pay 15% of its gate receipts, or about $4M per year, to
Meadowlands landlord NJ Sports & Exposition Authority
(NJSEA). This is "believed to be" the highest rent in the
NFL. Cyphers also notes that the Jets make no money from
naming rights, split their advertising revenue with the
NJSEA and the Giants, get "just" 14.5% of the rental money
from the 72 original luxury suites at Giants Stadium and
take only 25% from parking receipts. Additionally, the
stadium "has almost no club seats." But Cyphers adds that
if a new stadium were built for the Jets before 2008, the
team "would still be locked into" its Meadowlands lease.
Cyphers suggests that a new owner "would have to wait out
the lease and gamble that he can finagle" a new stadium that
would cost at least $400M. Cyphers: "Here's a memo to the
rich guys on the runway: If you want a team, buy the Jets.
If you want a wise investment, buy a ticket. And walk away"
(DAILY NEWS, 8/26).
ROADBLOCK? In Las Vegas, Mark Anderson wrote that MGM
Grand Owner and prospective Jets bidder Kirk Kerkorian might
"face some stiff opposition" if he follows through with his
bid. League rules prohibit a team owner from having an
ownership stake in a casino (REVIEW-JOURNAL, 8/25).
