The Packers accounted for all their scheduled relocation-fee revenue in their most recent FY, driving up net income nearly 50% to $72.8M, the team reported. Of that amount, $27.1M is from the anticipated relocation fees of the Rams’ and Chargers’ move to L.A., as well as the Raiders, who are planning to be in Las Vegas by '20. The total amount of relocation fees paid by the teams comes to more than $1.5B. The $27.1M figure is the real-time value of the future fees, which will not begin to be actually paid for three years. The Packers decided to account for the future income now. The Packers, the only NFL team to report financials, posted record revenue of $441.4M, up 8%. That was driven in large part by growth in national TV money. Local revenue also rose 6.1% to $197.4M, due in part to strong sponsorship and digital revenue growth. Packers President & CEO Mark Murphy said the team ranks second in the NFL behind the Cowboys in digital revenue. The team’s profit from operation declined nearly 13% to $65.4M, a reflection of several large player contracts signed in the most recent FY and amortization costs tied to two retail outlets at Lambeau Field. Expenses rose 42.4% to $376.1M. The figures are for the 12 months ended March 31, 2017 (Daniel Kaplan, Staff Writer). Murphy said, "The Lambeau Field Atrium renovation continues to serve us well." He added the team is taking the profit and "investing it in the stadium, investing it in the team" (GREEN BAY PRESS-GAZETTE, 7/13). In Milwaukee, Rich Kirchen noted the Billy Joel concert at Lambeau on June 17 "will count" toward the current FY's financial report. Murphy said that the team plans to "continue hosting non-Packers events at Lambeau." Murphy: "Our goal is one major event at Lambeau every year" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 7/12).
GLIMPSE BEHIND THE CURTAIN: BLOOMBERG NEWS' Eben Novy-Williams noted the NFL distributed a record $7.8B to its 32 teams in '16, a jump of almost 10% that "reflects the league’s increasingly rich TV deals." Each NFL team "receives an equal share of the league’s 'national revenue' -- primarily money from television deals, but also league-wide sponsorships, licensing and merchandise sales." The Packers reported yesterday that they got $244M, up from $222.6M last year. The Packers' annual financial release is the only "regular glimpse into the business of the NFL since the league dropped its tax-exempt status" in '15 and "no longer has to release financial information like Commissioner Roger Goodell’s annual salary" (BLOOMBERG NEWS, 7/12). CBSSPORTS.com's Sean Wagner-McGough wrote, "Nobody should be surprised by the amount of money the NFL and its teams are bringing in -- especially with added revenue of relocation fees." However, it is noteworthy because it comes at a time when NFLers are "becoming increasingly vocal about the state of their contracts." As NBAers have "landed monster contracts this summer, NFL players have used social media to point out the disparity in contracts" (CBSSPORTS.com, 7/12).
