NFL stadiums
NFL stadiums are almost always built on the backs of taxpayers. Judith Grant Long, an urban expert, estimates that on average each NFL stadium received about $60 million more in taxpayer funding than the average Major League Baseball stadium obtained.[1]
For every NFL stadium constructed between 1990 and 2010, taxpayers were bilked an average of $262 million.[1]
"From 1990 through 2023, voters cast ballots on 57 stadium and arena proposals across the country, approving 35 and rejecting 22, according to data compiled by Propheter."[2] But even when defeated in a referendum, the billionaire NFL owners have typically looted taxpayers another way to get the public funding they want, such as going to the state legislature for funding.[2]
Chicago
In fall 2022, a debate is in Chicago over whether taxpayers should fund the possibly billionaire owners of the Chicago Bears to build a new stadium for them in a suburb such as Arlington Heights. Conservative writer Nancy Thorner described a debate on this issue in early October 2022, entitled "WHether or Not to Feed the Chicago Bears."[3]
Buffalo
In June 2021, the Buffalo Bills announced that they had retained Legends, a company co-owned by Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, to represent owners in their attempt to build a new stadium. The Bills' current lease runs through the 2023 season.
Although not disclosed in the announcement, these projects often impose massive new burdens on taxpayers. The Legends firm helped procure a new stadium for the Oakland Raiders in Las Vegas, by building a new stadium there which costs taxpayers roughly $1 billion.[4]
In 2022, the Bills then looted the taxpayers of New York for a new stadium as follows:
| “ | The stadium deal announced on March 28 commits the state to spending $600 million upfront to help cover construction costs. Erie County would put up $250 million. The state is also on the hook for $100 million over 15 years to cover stadium maintenance and repairs. The county and the state authority created to oversee the stadium would be obligated to kick in $180 million over the 30-year lease for capital improvements. In total, the deal will cost state and county taxpayers $1.13 billion over the 30-year life of the lease.[5] | ” |
In a follow-up analysis in December 2024, the New York Post lambasted this looting of taxpayers:
| “ | The Bills were worth $3.4 billion when Hochul agreed to the deal, according to Forbes.
... Earlier this month, the [Bills' owner] sold a 10% stake to Arctos Partners — and another 10% to 10 limited partners led by NBA Hall of Famer Vince Carter — at a $5.8 billion valuation. [6] |
” |
Washington, D.C.
Private equity purchased the NFL's Washington Commanders and within 18 months got the U.S. Senate to approve on a voice vote at 1:15am on a Saturday just prior to the end of the 2023-2024 session a special deal for the billionaire owners: "Senate passes RFK Stadium land bill, giving the Washington Commanders a major off-the-field win."[7]
Water waste
Stadiums are incredibly wasteful of water, including areas suffering severely from a drought. Copious water, for example, is needed to pressure-wash away the mess left by fans afterward.
See also
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/taxpayers-nfl-stadiums_55f08313e4b002d5c077b8ac
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 https://apnews.com/article/royals-chiefs-stadiums-taxes-public-funding-f1381c8916144371b3037ebc5b2dcc47
- ↑ https://www.illinoisreview.com/illinoisreview/2022/10/thorner-conservative-groups-debate-whether-or-not-to-feed-the-chicago-bears.html
- ↑ https://www.reviewjournal.com/business/stadium/heres-a-look-at-the-finances-behind-1-9b-allegiant-stadium-2106708/
- ↑ https://www.investigativepost.org/2022/09/19/no-relief-for-local-taxpayers-on-bills-stadium/ (emphasis added)
- ↑ https://nypost.com/2024/12/16/business/gov-hochul-slammed-over-tax-funded-buffalo-stadium-after-bills-owner-pockets-billions/
- ↑ https://apnews.com/article/washington-commanders-rfk-stadium-land-bill-c5caa7978d13d67e9a1d77df0f490ac6
