Does football get started on time?

posted by SportsAndLady

Seeing a lot of rumors of the nba season getting cancelled. Have a friend who works in an nba front office and he basically said the seasons done. 
What about football? There’s almost no way it’s “business as usual” right? Logistically, it almost can’t happen. An nfl media guy brought up a good point the other day—team doctors and medical professionals can’t just start working for the teams during a massive pandemic right? They’ll almost assuredly be tied up in hospitals fighting the virus. How can you start training camp with no medical professionals with the teams? 

 

I think we see a shortened season. Something like 2 preseason games and a 14 game season. To make sure the super bowl date doesn’t get pushed back.
what say you?  

Not seeing that, at all.

There was a Sports Illustrated article today basically saying sorry but without a vaccine sports shouldn’t be back at all. 
 

Lalely you’d be most the knowledgeable on this but suppose sports was gone for a full calendar year. How do ESPN, Sports Illustrated, FOX Sports just to name a few of many....how do they survive something like that? 

posted by friendfromlowry

There was a Sports Illustrated article today basically saying sorry but without a vaccine sports shouldn’t be back at all. 
 

Lalely you’d be most the knowledgeable on this but suppose sports was gone for a full calendar year. How do ESPN, Sports Illustrated, FOX Sports just to name a few of many....how do they survive something like that? 

EPSN has Disney, and enough other programming to survive. But man, those networks would be taking a huge hit. The difference with other businesses is that you know the money is there in droves when sports return. So, most of the networks will do everything in their power to support the sports branch of the company. 
The ones who are more in danger are companies like mine, VIZ, Chyron, Avid Edit. Stuff like that. The people who make the shit we use. Or a company like NEP, or GameCreek. The ones supplying the equipment and actual TV trucks to put the games on. It will be real interesting how long they can go without a source of income.

I did hear a good point on the golf this morning I hadn’t considered. Maybe they could have done the Masters without a crowd but what a blow to the local economy that’d really be. So they’d rather hold out and hope they can get it done in November without missing too much of a beat.

posted by friendfromlowry

There was a Sports Illustrated article today basically saying sorry but without a vaccine sports shouldn’t be back at all. 
 

Lalely you’d be most the knowledgeable on this but suppose sports was gone for a full calendar year. How do ESPN, Sports Illustrated, FOX Sports just to name a few of many....how do they survive something like that? 

Big boys likely could survive, but what about the regional like the FSO/STO as you stated, and  big ten networks, SEC, etc.....

I actually watched like 3 episodes of ESPN's H-O-R-S-E tourney.  Only reason to watch it was just to see the NBA guy's back yards and courts.

I think woman's WWE in Florida has been declared essential.  I probably won't watch.

Where’s the Lingerie Football League when you need it?

Heard a few minutes ago on the Sirius NFL channel that the schedules will be released in early May and it's likely that they will frontload (most likely) or backload the division games together. So for AFC North fans, as an example, we could see; Week 1 Browns at Bengals, Ravens at Steelers, Week 2 Steelers at Browns, Bengals at Ravens, etc until they get all of the inter-division games in just in case the season gets shortened.

6 straight weeks of divisional games would be very intense...

posted by slingshot4ever

6 straight weeks of divisional games would be very intense...

I don't think it will be that extreme.  Need to figure out a minimum schedule to have a playoff, which IMO that would be your 6 divisional games plus the 4 rotating conference divisional opponent.

I'm not sure if games are canceled at the end of the season you'd still have a playoff.  I think you plan for the season to potentially start a month late, and if it ended-up being 2 months cancel the first 4 and push everything else back a month.  That would be a 12 game season.  Start with the 4 non-conference games as those are the most expendable to the schedule.

Of course, I'm sure the schedule will mainly reflect maximizing ratings in a potentially shortened season.

We’re not any closer to sports being back on, are we? Saw a tweet a few days ago that a proposal for getting back to play in baseball was possible for June and July but that felt “overly optimistic.”

posted by friendfromlowry

We’re not any closer to sports being back on, are we? Saw a tweet a few days ago that a proposal for getting back to play in baseball was possible for June and July but that felt “overly optimistic.”

Unless you're talking UFC (tonight) or NASCAR (about 10 days from now?), I'm not sure if anything is planned to start back up in the near future.

On the preseason thread I brought this up.

I wonder if the NFL has a drop dead latest date for a Super Bowl.   Lets say it is the last sunday in March.  That is 7 weeks after it was originally scheduled.

If they go to just 2 preseason games that essentially means they could push the season 9 weeks.   SOme talk of taking away the bye weeks. That would be logistically tougher than originally thought I believe.

posted by thavoice

I wonder if the NFL has a drop dead latest date for a Super Bowl.   Lets say it is the last sunday in March.  That is 7 weeks after it was originally scheduled.

I'd be tempted to say 2 weeks before March Madness, because you don't want to compete against conference tournaments and then 3 weeks of the tourney.

There's also the fact that teams are going to lose up to $100M if there are no fans.  So maybe not quite the appetite to really have a season as we would like to believe.  Not sure what contracts (including TV) or the CBA say about a shortened season, or even no season.  Less than 14 game regular season could become prohibitively costly.

Otherwise there's not really anything to prevent pushing the SB back 5-6 weeks.  Except logistically moving schedules becomes quite difficult, especially the SB with all the related event planning that goes around it.  If you go to the extreme, 10 games is the minimum season you need to determine playoff teams, so push the start of the season up to 3 months (6 games, eliminate the bye week, eliminate 2 preseason games, push the SB a month).

posted by gut

I'd be tempted to say 2 weeks before March Madness, because you don't want to compete against conference tournaments and then 3 weeks of the tourney.

There's also the fact that teams are going to lose up to $100M if there are no fans.  So maybe not quite the appetite to really have a season as we would like to believe.  Not sure what contracts (including TV) or the CBA say about a shortened season, or even no season.  Less than 14 game regular season could become prohibitively costly.

Otherwise there's not really anything to prevent pushing the SB back 5-6 weeks.  Except logistically moving schedules becomes quite difficult, especially the SB with all the related event planning that goes around it.  If you go to the extreme, 10 games is the minimum season you need to determine playoff teams, so push the start of the season up to 3 months (6 games, eliminate the bye week, eliminate 2 preseason games, push the SB a month).

I dont think there is much of an issue going at the same time as the conference tournaments.   Have the TV conflicts with CBS and such, but in terms of fans and such I dont think the NFL would balk going up against college hoops.

Of course both would hate to have less viewers, but NFL playoffs rule the roost.

I wonder if the season does get shortened if we will see what is going on in MLB.   MLBPA is not happy with essentially a salary cap.  I wonder if the NFL would just essentially give a pro rated amount of their contracts or what.  That would be the easiest route.   

posted by gut

I'd be tempted to say 2 weeks before March Madness, because you don't want to compete against conference tournaments and then 3 weeks of the tourney.

There's also the fact that teams are going to lose up to $100M if there are no fans.  So maybe not quite the appetite to really have a season as we would like to believe.  Not sure what contracts (including TV) or the CBA say about a shortened season, or even no season.  Less than 14 game regular season could become prohibitively costly.

Otherwise there's not really anything to prevent pushing the SB back 5-6 weeks.  Except logistically moving schedules becomes quite difficult, especially the SB with all the related event planning that goes around it.  If you go to the extreme, 10 games is the minimum season you need to determine playoff teams, so push the start of the season up to 3 months (6 games, eliminate the bye week, eliminate 2 preseason games, push the SB a month).

Ticket sales are not even close to the primary money maker for these owners. So I strongly disagree they may not have an appetite to play the season without fans in the crowd. They’ll lose so much more money without a season than they will playing a season with no fans. 

These owners are losing millions a month by not having anything going on in the domes/stadiums they own.

Yes, ticket sales, parking, concessions etc bring in a ton of revenue, but they are going to jump at the tv rights to have a season. They have to make up some amount for the concerts, motocross, auto shows, etc that have been cancelled. Most stadiums are used like 250+ days a year, and now nothing for months. They need anything they can get.

posted by Laley23

These owners are losing millions a month by not having anything going on in the domes/stadiums they own.

Yes, ticket sales, parking, concessions etc bring in a ton of revenue, but they are going to jump at the tv rights to have a season. They have to make up some amount for the concerts, motocross, auto shows, etc that have been cancelled. Most stadiums are used like 250+ days a year, and now nothing for months. They need anything they can get.

WHen you say most stadiums, you surely cannot say that NFL/MLB stadiums are used that often.

NFL had 16.7 million fans at games last year.   Multiply that by ticket prices, concessions, parking, etc and that is one helluva alot of money.

2018 shows gate receipts were 15% of revenue. Now, I dont know if that is concessions as well.

2010 it was 21.5%

MLB is taking a huge hit here.  Last year over 68 million attended and they state that MLB teams earn 40% of their earnings by fans in attendance. Now taht does include in stadium advertising and such.

posted by SportsAndLady

Ticket sales are not even close to the primary money maker for these owners. So I strongly disagree they may not have an appetite to play the season without fans in the crowd. They’ll lose so much more money without a season than they will playing a season with no fans. 

As usual you're wrong.   TV accounts for only about half the revenues, on average.  Stadium revenues are about 35-40%.  The remainder is licensing fees.  In 2018, GB reported $455M in revenues and a profit between $30-$50M (excluding one-time extraordinary expenses).

They lose a lot less money if they cancel the season and don't pay players.  It depends, again, on how the CBA and contracts are worded.  But we can say with 100% certainty teams will lose tens of millions playing without fans.  GB in 2018 made $200M in local revenues that goes to virtually

posted by gut

As usual you're wrong.   TV accounts for only about half the revenues, on average.  Stadium revenues are about 35-40%.  The remainder is licensing fees.  In 2018, GB reported $455M in revenues and a profit between $30-$50M (excluding one-time extraordinary expenses).

They lose a lot less money if they cancel the season and don't pay players.  It depends, again, on how the CBA and contracts are worded.  But we can say with 100% certainty teams will lose tens of millions playing without fans.  GB in 2018 made $200M in local revenues that goes to virtually

You’re an idiot. You’re wrong. You’re a dumbass. As usual you’re incorrect. We disagree. Your brain is the size of a peanut. Kill yourself. 
 

^thats how you respond when someone even respectfully disagrees with you lol you’ve gotta be the most miserable human being to be around IRL.