Franchise Notes
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Celtics Reportedly Drawing $2M In
Ticket Sales Per Playoff Home Game |
A source said that the Celtics during the NBA Playoffs likely are "pulling in $2[M] in ticket sales per home game, or double the regular season." SportsCorp President Marc Ganis said that after adding in sponsorship deals and merchandise sales, a team in a "major market like Boston can expect to make profits of $1[M] per home game." One exec estimated that Delware North, which operates TD Banknorth Garden, is making "$450,000 in food and beverage revenue, maybe half of that profit." TD Banknorth Garden President John Wentzell said that sales of "hats, jerseys and other souvenirs are soaring" (BOSTON HERALD, 6/6). During Lakers-Celtics NBA Finals Game One on Thursday, the team had its best merchandise sales night ever at TD Banknorth Garden. The team's "Beat L.A." shirt sold out in all styles (NBA).
HOMETOWN FLAVOR: Celtics CEO & Managing Partner Wyc Grousbeck: "We're the first Boston owners of the Celtics since Walter Brown in 1963. We bought the team from an absentee owner." But in Boston, Steve Buckley writes Grousbeck will "take no bows" for the Celtics' success (BOSTON HERALD, 6/6)....SI.com's Arash Markazi wrote the Lakers have "hypnotized" L.A., and have "taken over the city" (SI.com, 6/5).
DOES IT PAY TO WIN? Smith College sports economist Andrew Zimbalist in a Q&A with the WALL STREET JOURNAL said the Cubs' on-field success would likely increase their sale value. Zimbalist said of a prospective owner, "If they are spending a lot of money on a good team, it not only augurs well for this year in terms of revenue generation, it augurs well for the future because they will have the same talent more or less available next year." When asked how the Cubs winning the World Series would impact the team's sale, Zimbalist said, "There's a lot of buzz around the Cubs winning the World Series. ... The thing about buzz, though, is if you look at the people who are looking to buy the club, like [Madison Dearborn Partners Chair & CEO] Jim Canning and [Mavericks Owner] Mark Cuban, they are very hard-nosed business men. They might appreciate the buzz, but it is unlikely they will open their wallets too far because there's a buzz" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 6/6).
FAIR BALL: Following an incident last week when a lesbian fan attending a Mariners game claimed that she had been singled out by the Safeco Field staff, the team Thursday said in a statement that following an internal investigation, the seating staff "had acted appropriately, and the couple was approached because of their behavior -- which included 'making out' and 'groping' in the stands -- and not their sexual orientation." The Mariners in the release said that the women were "told they could continue to kiss, but that they had to 'tone it down'" (AP, 6/5).
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