Since 1990, more than $65 billion (in 2020 dollars) has been spent on stadium construction in North America’s “big five” sports leagues, with more than $30 billion of that coming from taxpayer subsidies. After public interest in building expensive sports facilities died a decade after the Great Recession of 2008, stadium proposals began circulating in 2022, with more than $1 billion worth of arenas on the drawing board across the country, from Buffalo to Oakland.
Stadium advocates have made a number of arguments in an attempt to counter the idea that taxpayer subsidies are just handouts to millionaire players and billionaire owners. One of the most common is that sports facilities are not only home to the primary sports tenant, but can instead be used to host a range of events. The operators of Chicago’s Soldier Field claim that “the stadium’s fields now host more than 200 days of event use per year.” Worcester officials claimed that Polar Park, the newest (and at $160 million, the most expensive) minor league baseball park, “is expected to host 125 year-round events,” including affordable family baseball games, outdoor concerts, other sporting events, community meetings /events and even a potential polling station. But do professional sports stadiums really have much to do outside of the sports they were built for?
To answer this question, my colleagues Robert Baumann, Frank Stephenson, and I, along with undergraduate assistants Robert Murray and Jack Muldowney, tracked facility utilization at 148 sites in 56 cities in the US and Canada between 2000 and 2019. We started with the number of regular season events that would normally be expected from the primary tenant at the site. Obviously, a reasonable number of NBA and NHL teams share facilities, and there are a handful of other sharing arrangements that would increase utilization in some venues. To that we added the number of observed home playoff games per year for each stadium.
We then went to Pollstar, an industry trade group that covers all the major concerts and other travel entertainment such as ice skating, children’s shows, comedians and Cirque du Soleil. Finally, we’ve included major non-league sporting events such as US men’s and women’s national soccer team games, NCAA basketball playoffs, college bowl games, international soccer tournaments and league all-star games. The numbers here are not complete, as they miss out on some international soccer friendlies and most high school sporting events, but they include almost all events that are likely to generate large attendances.
Data shows that outside of NBA/NHL arenas, most sports fields are rarely used outside of regular season games. In fact, in an average year, a typical NFL, MLB or MLS facility hosts fewer than five major entertainment or sporting events other than regular season games played by the primary tenant. Except for “mega-artists” like Taylor Swift or Bruce Springsteen, NFL stadiums are simply too big for most concert performances. Baseball stadiums are poorly designed for watching anything but baseball. MLS stadiums are a poor choice for most non-soccer events given the availability of similarly sized venues in most cities. So, outside of large indoor arenas, taxpayers should expect their investment in sports facilities to be empty most of the year.
Victor Matheson, professor of economics at the College of the Holy Cross, is a former editor of the Journal of Sports Economics.
1. EnergySolutions Arenas. It’s hard to doubt that the Utah Jazz have the craziest and loudest fans in the entire NBA.
How many football stadiums are there in Melbourne?
| Stadium | Capacity | City |
|---|---|---|
| Melbourne Cricket Ground | 100,024 | Melbourne |
| Stadium Australia | 84,000 | Sydney |
| Perth Stadium | 65,000 | Perth |
| Docklands Stadium | 56,347 | Melbourne |
What is the most famous stadium in Melbourne? The famous MCG Coliseum which is the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) is one of the most recognizable landmarks of Melbourne. Home of Australian Cricket and the Australian Football League and the venue of the 1956 Olympics and 2006 Commonwealth Games, the MCG has a seating capacity of 100,000.
How many AFL stadiums are there in Melbourne?
The AFL evolved from the Victoria Football League (VFL), which is why half of the AFL’s 18 teams are based in Melbourne. Nine teams from Melbourne play in just two stadiums; five at the Melbourne Cricket Ground and four at Marvel Stadium (Docklands).
How many stadiums does Melbourne have?
There are three multi-purpose stadiums at Melbourne Park, namely; Rod Laver Arena, Margaret Court and Hisense Arena. Read also : Bardo Arts Center announces the fall season.
What is the biggest stadium in the southern hemisphere?
As the world’s largest cricket ground by capacity and the largest sports stadium in the southern hemisphere, the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) has been home to the Melbourne Cricket Club and many sporting, musical and cultural events since 1854. See the article : Minium: Former ODU Football Star Taylor Heinicke Featured Speaker at Norfolk Sports Club Jamboree.
What is the biggest stadium in the world? Rungrado 1st of May Stadium, Pyongyang It is designed to host multiple sports, including athletics. Rungrado is the largest stadium in the world.
What is the plural of stadium?
noun. stadium ·dium | ˈstā-dē-əm plural of stadiums or stadiums ˈstā-dē-ə On the same subject : Judith Durham: a pioneering woman in Australian music.
What is the singular of the word stadia? Although dictionaries have traditionally favored “stadia” as the plural, stadia are more natural and now more common …
What’s the plural of the word stadium?
The correct use would be stadiums.
What type of noun is stadium?
The word ‘stadium’ is a common noun.
What is the smallest arena in the US?
NBA arenas ranked by seating capacity, from largest to smallest
- The difference in seating capacity between the largest hall (United Center: 20,197) and the smallest hall (Smoothie King Center: 16,867) is exactly 3,330 seats, a difference of about 19.74%.
- The average capacity of the stadium is 18,966.
What is the biggest hall? Philippine Arena, PHILIPPINES The Philippine Arena is currently the largest indoor arena in the world, equipped for 55,000 seats in a fully enclosed structure. Since its opening, the arena has hosted a number of sporting, musical and church events.
What is the biggest arena?
Shaped like a parachute, the May 1 Rungrado Stadium is mainly used for football matches – it is the home stadium of the North Korean national football team. It is designed to host multiple sports, including athletics. Rungrado is the largest stadium in the world.
