Menu
Download the app

SBJ subscribers – Enhance your experience with the revamped iOS app

Research and Ratings

Top 10 Minor League Markets: No. 7 Sioux Falls, S.D.

TEAMS (FIRST SEASON): American Association Sioux Falls Canaries (1993), NBA D-League Sioux Falls Skyforce (1989), IFL Sioux Falls Storm (2000)

VENUES (YEAR OPENED): Sioux Falls Stadium (1941, renovated 2000), Pentagon by Sanford Health (2013), Denny Sanford Premier Center (2014)

The smallest economy in terms of total wealth and least-populated market in this year’s top 10 ranked No. 10 in our 2013 study largely because total attendance in the market increased by 5 percent over the survey’s measured five-year period, a rate that was just a bit above its population growth metric. Additionally, all three teams in the city had registered record or near-record attendance in their most recent seasons.

This time around, the Canaries, Skyforce and Storm averaged 267,000 fans per year over their past three seasons, up 47 percent compared with what they averaged across their two years prior. Compared to a population growth rate that was 5 percent over that same, most recent three-year span, it was a ratio unmatched in the study.

The strong attendance numbers were generated at least in part by the construction of two new arenas over the past two years. The Skyforce moved into the Pentagon by Sanford Health in 2013 and has filled 91 percent of its seats since then, according to the team. The Storm moved into the new Denny Sanford Premier Center this spring and saw its attendance increase by one-third to 6,226 fans per game. Only the AFL Spokane Shock (8,034 per game) and IFL Iowa Barnstormers (6,421) had a better average attendance among football teams in our study.

As for the Canaries, the independent league team has averaged 143,819 fans per season over the past three years, up 45 percent compared with the previous three years.

— David Broughton

SBJ Morning Buzzcast: March 25, 2024

NFL meeting preview; MLB's opening week ad effort and remembering Peter Angelos.

Big Get Jay Wright, March Madness is upon us and ESPN locks up CFP

On this week’s pod, our Big Get is CBS Sports college basketball analyst Jay Wright. The NCAA Championship-winning coach shares his insight with SBJ’s Austin Karp on key hoops issues and why being well dressed is an important part of his success. Also on the show, Poynter Institute senior writer Tom Jones shares who he has up and who is down in sports media. Later, SBJ’s Ben Portnoy talks the latest on ESPN’s CFP extension and who CBS, TNT Sports and ESPN need to make deep runs in the men’s and women's NCAA basketball tournaments.

SBJ I Factor: Nana-Yaw Asamoah

SBJ I Factor features an interview with AMB Sports and Entertainment Chief Commercial Office Nana-Yaw Asamoah. Asamoah, who moved over to AMBSE last year after 14 years at the NFL, talks with SBJ’s Ben Fischer about how his role model parents and older sisters pushed him to shrive, how the power of lifelong learning fuels successful people, and why AMBSE was an opportunity he could not pass up. Asamoah is 2021 SBJ Forty Under 40 honoree. SBJ I Factor is a monthly podcast offering interviews with sports executives who have been recipients of one of the magazine’s awards.

Shareable URL copied to clipboard!

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Journal/Issues/2015/08/17/Research-and-Ratings/Minors-Sioux-Falls.aspx

Sorry, something went wrong with the copy but here is the link for you.

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Journal/Issues/2015/08/17/Research-and-Ratings/Minors-Sioux-Falls.aspx

CLOSE