Houston area residents oppose spending public funds to keep
the Oilers in town by a 2-1 margin, according to a HOUSTON
CHRONICLE/KPRC-TV poll. John Williams reports in the CHRONICLE
that "the problem appears to be" Oilers Owner Bud Adams. Two of
every three surveyed said Adams is the Oilers' "biggest
liability." And 75% had an unfavorable opinion of Adams.
Residents were evenly split on raising taxes to attract another
NFL team, with 41% in favor, 41% opposed and 18% undecided. Of
the 428 Harris County adults interviewed, 78% believe having a
NFL team is "either very important or somewhat important to the
city's economy and attracting new business." However, only 30%
favor spending funds to keep the Oilers in town. The poll was
taken Saturday, just before the Oilers game with San Diego was
canceled due to turf problems at the Astrodome (HOUSTON
CHRONICLE, 8/21). "Many of the more cynical observers" who
attended the non-game thought the cancellation "was staged" to
fuel Adams' desire for a new stadium (Salatheia Bryant, HOUSTON
CHRONICLE, 8/20). ESPN's Mike Tirico noted the ploy may have
been part of a "political power play" between the Oilers and the
Astrodome ("SportsCenter," ESPN, 8/19).
TEXAS TEA = BIG BUCKS IN NASHVILLE? An Oilers move to
Nashville could "make the team one of the most profitable" in the
NFL, according to a report in Saturday's CHRONICLE. John
Williams reports that experts say lucrative stadium deal in
Nashville could add $10M-$20M a year to the team's operations.
Mike Megna of Milwaukee-based Megna Valuations, a sports
franchise appraiser: "The Oilers would automatically be worth
more than most teams the second they move to Nashville." Megna
notes that the team would be worth as much as $220M -- only the
Cowboys were valued at more in a recent FINANCIAL WORLD piece.
Williams notes that Adams current situation in Houston leaves him
"not exactly hurting in the pocketbook." The Oilers operating
income was $2.8M last year which was 9.7% lower than the NFL
average of $3.1M. The team ranked 14th in stadium revenue last
season, with $4.5M -- 16.7% lower than the league's $5.4M
average. The team's gate receipts were $12.5M -- 11% lower than
the league average of $14.9M. However, the team operates "the
sixth sparsest operation" spending $55.2M last year, $3.4M less
than the NFL average (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 8/19).
