Word: stadiums
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
Alcohol, of course, plays a part too. In the NFL, serious tailgaters fuel up before they even enter the stadium. Many teams are sponsored in part by a brewer, and beer sales make up a significant percentage of a stadium's concession revenues--a spigot that teams are not eager to cut off. Still, to head off trouble, most basketball and football venues stop selling beer by the end of the third quarter (as does the Palace in Auburn Hills...
...obnoxiousness isn't limited to pro sports either. Many college venues take great pride in their lack of hospitality for visiting teams. At Duke University the denizens of the Cameron Indoor Stadium, known as the Cameron Crazies, specialize in personal taunts that often cross the line. They once showered condoms on a Maryland player who had been accused of sexual assault. Last season they dangled chicken nuggets on a fishing pole near chunky Tar Heels center Sean May. The Crazies are "an integral part of our success," says Duke assistant athletic director of communication Jon Jackson. "The Crazies have...
...many businesses survive, never mind thrive, with a customer-satisfaction rate of 50%. Somehow that ratio doesn't do justice to the 68,756 patrons packing spiffy Gillette Stadium and the 5.5 million homes watching ESPN as quarterback Tom Brady leads the New England Patriots past the Buffalo Bills. Armed with a game plan designed by the league's best coach, Bill Belichick, Brady dismantles the Bills. No doubt Bills customers at home in western New York are disappointed. Two weeks earlier, it was the Pats turn to disappoint, courtesy of a whipping from the surging Pittsburgh Steelers. The real...
...league's fastest growing revenue stream comes from new stadiums, which are also a product of the recent centralization. Under a program called G3, the league grabs $1 million in television revenues from each team and uses the money as collateral to float bonds for stadium construction. The NFL has loaned $725 million to help build or renovate 20 stadiums in the past 10 years. Total investment: $3 billion, $2.4 billion of which has been put up by owners. To keep those projects going--new stadiums are abuilding in Dallas and Phoenix, Ariz.--the league maintains in-house finance...
These new football palaces have made the games a much more pleasant customer experience. And they gush money. The Patriots' Gillette Stadium opened in 2002 at a cost of $350 million. None of it was publicly financed, and about half was initially financed by the NFL. The new stadium has 87 luxury suites, which sell for $100,000 to $300,000 annually; its 6,000 clubhouse seats go for $5,000 each. Throw in the stadium signage and naming rights, and the Patriots go from 28th in the league in stadium revenues to near the top. The Green Bay Packers...