Why should public money be used to build sports stadiums

16 September 2018

Why Should Public Funds Be Used To Build Sports Stadiums?

Sport is a well-paying venture for many business persons if anything is to go by. The government ensures that its citizens are satisfied to be in their particular country thereby trying to make it better for the people. United States is one of the countries that would like to make a good living of all the citizens. This is the reason many states officers have tried to look at the business of sports with various targets. One of the reasons is making money that would fund the government services to improve on the service delivery. Another targeted reason is to make it a good place that youths can spend time to avoid staffs like drugs and bad companies among others.

One of the above reasons has been successful in a way and that is keeping the youths busy and to make them happy as thy like to be associated with the football among other sports. The other reason which was to make money has proved to be wrong for decades[1]. The federal government and the county governments have tried to indulge in funding the building of stadiums to get the flow of people who will in turn bring profits to the states. It has be shown that teams come when the stadiums are complete and use them to create money for both the private businesses and the government over a certain period of time. Then they move to seek a greener pasture leaving the states to continue paying debts instead of gaining from the facilities.

Federal government has seen the loss in giving the tax-free bonds for the buildup of the stadiums thereby losing a significant amount of money. In the years between 1970 and 1980, several sport facilities including Silver dome in Pontiac and the giant stadium in New Jersey have each caused federal government a tax loss that exceeds $1 million1[2]. Those were ten 10 sport facilities that cost that much and they still affect those who are born today since that is the public funds that was used. The initial project had been seen as the one big investment that would make the government make a lot of money in the future but the future seems to be haunting. Since 1970 there are several decades that most officers are supposed to from and start investing in other business using public funds. As a matter of fact those that benefit a lot from the program are the private investors who only own the team and run the way sport will played. They are the same people who should the largest part in creating the place that will make them a living rather than waiting for the public funds to be used then they take the lion share over a period of time and leave. In fact there is a report that links the loss of more than $6.7 billion in to the construction of stadiums since the year 2000[3]. This is the reason that some officers said that the venture will only benefit a few and there is no sense in putting money there.

NFL holds the ticket for the stadiums to be high enough meaning that most citizens may not be able to afford them. It is absurd that the money from the public funding is used to make the stadiums while it is very difficult for the citizens to get in for the fun they deserve. It is rather the government channels the money towards making a better health care that will sure serve everyone in one point or another. The teams are rich and they can take care of themselves. They should follow the law of return on investments as they are the biggest winners.

Instead of the local and the federal governments fully funding the stadiums or any sport facility, they should come to the table with the managers and the owners of the leagues to bargain on how to fund for the facilities. This means that a contract should be given and if the government’s money is to be used, then those leagues that are supposed to own them should sign so that in case they leave the stadium before the agreed time, they should be fined money that would see the debt are paid. This would bring sanity and trust from the unknowing citizens of the United States.  The agreement should put in place how much was used and the revenue that is supposed to be brought by the stadium and the number of years that the teams will use the same. Another part that should be looked up is how the sport is being handled. It should be run in a professional manner that has business skills because there would be of no use for the team to hold up on a particular stadium without making enough money to sustain itself and the government. In as much as the place is used as the recreational area, making money should be the priority as this is an investment. This means that it will be a responsibility of the handlers and all the stakeholders to woe the people to visit the city to watch the game. More people more returns and that is the basic strategy of any business.

The other side of the coin depicts that it is very useful to have this facilities and it would be very fair if there would be a cure to this. It is a recreational facility and the place that keeps the youths busy to forget about many youthful indulgences that may ruin their life. Thinking in that manner it would be a good idea to come with a plan that will take care of both the issues for retaining the public funds and making of the stadiums.

The main reason for this kind of thinking is to make sure that in the long run, there are stadiums that are put in place and it is not the public funds that are used to create them. The only problem is that it has been futile when such agreements are called for[4]. Maybe the government officials are too tough when it comes to the specifics of the agreement or the stakeholders are greedy and want to earn more from zero investments. The economists generally do not support the use of government subsidies to create more stadiums in as much as they have good impact[5]. If there would come selfless leaders in both forums of the political and sports arena, there can be a good way of creating a win-win circumstance that will oversee the nation stop losing much in the revenue on the annual basis and still make a positive impact on the sports as it is still the number one accepted social gathering that makes people happy from a long time ago.

 

1.      ANZILOTTI, E. (2016). Should the Federal Government Be Funding Private Sports Stadiums?. Retrieved from https://www.citylab.com/solutions/2016/09/quantifying-the-federal-dollars-spent-on-sports-stadiums/499856/

2.      Zimbalist, A., & Noll, R. (1997). Sports, Jobs, & Taxes: Are New Stadiums Worth the Cost?. Retrieved from https://www.brookings.edu/articles/sports-jobs-taxes-are-new-stadiums-worth-the-cost/

3.       Staff, G. (2018). Why Do We Keep Using Public Money to Fund Private Sports Stadiums?. Retrieved from https://grandstandcentral.com/should-public-money-be-used-on-private-sports-stadiums-94f6f91ec95b

4.      Zimbalist, A., & Noll, R. (1997). Sports, Jobs, & Taxes: Are New Stadiums Worth the Cost?. Retrieved from https://www.brookings.edu/articles/sports-jobs-taxes-are-new-stadiums-worth-the-cost/

5.      Wolla, S. (2017). Economics Of Subsidizing Sports Stadiums | St. Louis Fed. Retrieved from https://research.stlouisfed.org/publications/page1-econ/2017-05-01/the-economics-of-subsidizing-sports-stadiums/