Quote:
Originally Posted by Philly06Cup
Re Tangible benefits:
There aren't that many tangible or provably economic benefits to having a major sports team or building a new arena. I don't pretend it will boost the economy or create more jobs. Studies suggest it won't.
But I think the Intangible benefits are being vastly understated. They are huge. Gigantic. Immeasurable. Hockey is part of the culture of Calgary, and of Canada. Losing an NHL would be losing part of the city's identity. Minor league hockey (or the CFL) would not be an adequate replacement. Professional sports teams bring a city together. Fivethirtyeight's informal study* suggests 2/3 of Calgarians are serious Calgary Flames fans. Let's not pretend the Flames don't matter to the city and its citizens. I'm sure most people on this board have lasting memories or created friendships through the Flames. You can't measure that, but it's real, and it's important. There is something wholly unique and special about having a professional sports team, particularly HOCKEY in CANADA.
This arena should be a win-win-win for all sides. Flames want a new stadium. The city wants a new stadium. Most fans/citizens would want a new stadium. I wish there could be a profit sharing model so that the city could also benefit financially a little bit from the Flames. There are so many non-economic ways the city can return the favor and support the team in return. It would make sense for all of our goals to align. There needs to be a true partnership between the city and the sports team.
* https://fivethirtyeight.com/features...e-stanley-cup/ |
I don't really disagree with the points in your post, but that 67% claim seems rather outlandish and the methodology suspect to say the least.
About 10% of Calgary's population watch any given Flames game on TV, and about 1.5% are at any given game. Just guessing, but I'd say about two thirds of those people are regulars who watch most games, and one third is a more casual audience.
My definition of an avid fan would be one who watches most games on TV or in person and that's probably more like 8% of the population. There's probably about an additional 15% who watch some games, that you could at least call a casual fan.
The number of people who care enough to spend some money to watch and support the Flames has got to be about 25% tops. That's still a pretty great hockey market. Some US cities are probably substantially less than 1%.