This was a pretty good article including an interesting chart that shows that having a brand new stadium does not cure all ills. http://www.usatoday.com/sports/baseball/2003-05-09-attendance-home-front_x.htm Click on some of the extra links to see the lengths some MLB teams are doing to raise attendance including basically giving away tickets for almost nothing. Andy
Well I did the Houston doubleheader yesterday and 28,000 folks managed to sneak out of work, and fight through a major pileup on I-45, on a Thursday to catch the Astros. 28k will likely beat all non-DH crowds in MLS this year.... Yes, 69k did go to the soccer game, too.
Thoughts on this stuff: - Yes, baseball is in a little trouble. Not the same kind as it would have been had there been another labor war, but it will be interesting to see if MLB can defend all the franchises (there are only a couple decent relocation prospects, and it seems there are more teams than that with scant hope of generating a profit in the near to medium term). And, in turn, contracting teams would hurt the public's confidence in the game somewhat. I think just talking about it did a little. - Re: the Marlins new policy (ten for the price of eight). It's high time baseball teams started offering volume discounts. Get people in the stadium, so they can buy stuff from the team, and just as importantly, so they can stay interested in the overall product. Baseball needs flex passes like MLS has in Dallas and DC. And they could do it, too. Nobody sells out the outfield every game anymore. - If the economic situation actually means anything, then MLS should be proud of holding their attendance steady during the slump. But, soeaking as an economist, I don't expect a sudden surge for MLS when it picks up, because the macro situation is not really all that bad. - It makes good economic sense to say baseball's prices have been skyrocketing because "people will pay for it." Trouble is, it appears in several cases they won't.
This may be true of a lot of teams giving away tickets or discounting but the Chicago cubs management has actually set up a ticket broker and supplied them with tickets to sell way over the face value price.
Apparently, they have NOT always been an exception. In the lifetimes of some of my Chicago native friends, the Cubs were letting people in free after about half the game was over, and had massively discounted tickets for afternoon games.
I have wondered how inflated the numbers are for baseball. I know the Reds have had as many as 10K in no shows but cannot speak for other teams.
Baseball is looking at globalization. The world is its oyster, so they think. This appeared two weeks ago. http://espn.go.com/mlb/news/2003/0429/1546569.html
Of course, the Cubs once played almost *all* their games in the afternoons. That is unimaginably difficult from a sales perspective.
Indeed. I wonder how popular the sox were back then. Not being a native, it's kind of hard to believe that the Sox were ever more popular than the Cubs. At least, popular in terms of people actually giving away money to see them, you know, live, in person. There are a lot of Sox fans around, but a Sox fan and his money are not easily parted.
The Sox were the more popular team right up until the Black Sox scandal broke. They've been in 2nd place ever since.
It has happened. It's long been said that "Chicago is a Cubs town," but there have been periods where the Sox have outdrawn them. You have to go back a ways, though. 16 of the last 18 years, the Cubs have outdrawn the Sox (though the Sox had a slightly higher per-game average in 1994), despite the fact the Sox are 1,449-1,396 (.509) with 3 division titles in that time and the Cubs are 1,352-1,492 (.475) with 1 division title (and a Wild Card berth). Year..Sox Total..Sox Avg..Cub Total...Cub Avg..Adv 2002...1,676,911...20,703...2,693,096...33,248..Cubs 2001...1,766,172...21,805...2,779,465...34,314..Cubs 2000...1,947,799...24,047...2,789,511...34,438..Cubs 1999...1,338,851...16,529...2,813,854...34,739..Cubs 1998...1,391,146...17,175...2,623,194...31,990..Cubs 1997...1,864,782...23,022...2,190,308...27,041..Cubs 1996...1,676,403...20,696...2,219,110...27,396..Cubs 1995...1,609,773...22,358...1,918,265...26,643..Cubs 1994...1,697,398...32,026...1,845,208...31,275..Cubs* 1993...2,581,091...31,865...2,653,763...32,363..Cubs 1992...2,681,156...32,697...2,126,720...26,256..Sox 1991...2,934,154...36,224...2,314,250...27,883..Sox 1990...2,002,357...25,029...2,243,791...27,701..Cubs 1989...1,045,651...13,071...2,491,942...30,765..Cubs 1988...1,115,749...13,775...2,089,034...25,476..Cubs 1987...1,208,060...14,914...2,035,130...25,439..Cubs 1986...1,424,313...17,584...1,859,102...23,239..Cubs 1985...1,669,888...20,616...2,161,534...26,686..Cubs 1984...2,136,988...26,383...2,107,655...26,346..Sox 1983...2,132,821...26,331...1,479,717...18,268..Sox 1982...1,567,787...19,597...1,249,278...15,423..Sox 1981.....946,651...19,319.....565,637....9,752..Sox 1980...1,200,365...14,819...1,206,776...14,898..Cubs 1979...1,280,702...16,211...1,648,587...20,353..Cubs 1978...1,491,100...18,639...1,525,311...18,601..Cubs* 1977...1,657,135...20,458...1,439,834...17,776..Sox 1976.....914,945...11,437...1,026,217...12,669..Cubs 1975.....750,802....9,269...1,034,819...12,776..Cubs 1974...1,149,596...14,019...1,015,378...12,536..Sox 1973...1,302,527...16,081...1,351,705...16,896..Cubs 1972...1,177,318...15,094...1,299,163...16,872..Cubs 1971.....833,891...10,295...1,653,007...20,407..Cubs 1970.....495,355....5,897...1,642,705...20,534..Cubs 1969.....589,546....7,278...1,674,993...20,427..Cubs 1968.....803,775....9,923...1,043,409...12,724..Cubs 1967.....985,634...12,020.....977,226...11,634..Sox 1966.....990,016...12,222.....635,891....7,851..Sox 1965...1,130,519...13,957.....641,361....7,727..Sox 1964...1,250,053...15,433.....751,647....9,280..Sox 1963...1,158,848...14,132.....979,551...12,093..Sox 1962...1,131,562...13,970.....609,802....7,528..Sox 1961...1,146,019...14,148.....673,057....8,629..Sox 1960...1,644,460...21,357.....809,770...10,250..Sox 1959...1,423,144...18,245.....858,255...11,146..Sox 1958.....797,451...10,357.....979,904...12,726..Cubs 1957...1,135,668...14,749.....670,629....8,598..Sox 1956...1,000,090...12,988.....720,118....9,001..Sox 1955...1,175,684...15,269.....875,800...11,374..Sox 1954...1,231,629...15,790.....748,183....9,717..Sox 1953...1,191,353...15,274.....763,658....9,918..Sox 1952...1,231,675...15,591...1,024,826...13,309..Sox 1951...1,328,234...17,029.....894,415...11,616..Sox 1950.....781,330....9,890...1,165,944...14,948..Cubs 1949.....937,151...12,171...1,143,139...14,846..Cubs 1948.....777,844...10,235...1,237,792...15,869..Cubs 1947.....876,948...11,693...1,364,039...17,266..Cubs 1946.....983,403...12,448...1,342,970...17,441..Cubs 1945.....657,981....8,892...1,036,386...13,637..Cubs 1944.....563,539....7,319.....640,110....8,207..Cubs 1943.....508,962....6,697.....508,247....6,777..Sox* 1942.....425,734....6,082.....590,972....7,577..Cubs 1941.....677,077....8,571.....545,159....7,080..Sox 1940.....660,336....8,466.....534,878....6,946..Sox 1939.....594,104....7,716.....726,663....9,083..Cubs 1938.....338,278....4,634.....951,640...12,359..Cubs 1937.....589,245....7,653.....895,020...11,475..Cubs 1936.....440,810....5,877.....699,370....9,083..Cubs 1935.....470,281....6,108.....692,604....8,995..Cubs 1934.....236,559....3,154.....707,525....9,189..Cubs 1933.....397,789....5,166.....594,112....7,520..Cubs 1932.....233,198....3,029.....974,688...12,658..Cubs 1931.....403,550....5,241...1,086,422...14,109..Cubs 1930.....406,123....5,207...1,463,624...18,527..Cubs 1929.....426,795....5,616...1,485,166...19,041..Cubs 1928.....494,152....6,335...1,143,740...14,854..Cubs 1927.....614,423....8,192...1,159,168...14,861..Cubs 1926.....710,339....8,992.....885,063...11,347..Cubs 1925.....832,231...10,808.....622,610....8,086..Sox 1924.....606,658....7,879.....716,922....9,191..Cubs 1923.....573,778....7,650.....703,705....9,139..Cubs 1922.....602,860....7,829.....542,283....7,135..Sox 1921.....543,650....7,060.....410,107....5,396..Sox 1920.....833,492...10,825.....480,783....6,244..Sox 1919.....627,186....8,960.....424,430....5,978..Sox 1918.....195,081....3,484.....337,256....4,558..Cubs 1917.....684,521....8,665.....360,218....4,678..Sox 1916.....679,923....8,830.....453,685....5,743..Sox 1915.....539,461....6,829.....217,058....2,819..Sox 1914.....469,290....5,794.....202,516....2,665..Sox 1913.....644,501....8,370.....419,000....5,513..Sox 1912.....602,241....7,721.....514,000....6,590..Sox 1911.....583,208....7,477.....576,000....6,857..Sox 1910.....552,084....6,988.....526,152....6,833..Sox 1909.....478,400....5,906.....633,480....8,227..Cubs 1908.....636,096....8,155.....665,325....8,530..Cubs 1907.....666,307....8,434.....422,550....5,560..Sox 1906.....585,202....7,408.....654,300....8,282..Cubs 1905.....687,419....8,383.....509,900....6,295..Sox 1904.....557,123....7,143.....439,100....5,629..Sox 1903.....286,183....4,088.....386,205....5,290..Cubs 1902.....337,898....4,693.....263,700....3,767..Sox 1901.....354,350....4,991.....205,071....2,930..Sox *Other team had an average attendance advantage that year. In 1991 and 1992 (the first two years of New Comiskey), the Sox had a pretty clear advantage. The first four years of Tribune management (1981-84), the Sox had an advantage. The Sox owned much of the 1950's and 1960's (at least from an attendance standpoint), and went to the World Series in 1959. The Cubs pretty much had the advantage post-Black Sox Scandal. Before that it was close, and in the early, early days, the Cubs were in the Series a lot, and baseball attendance was nothing to write home about by today's standards.