Profit Players Newsletter March 13th

Author

Nate Rodgers
March 13, 2024

NFL Free Agency…By The Numbers

Vincent Carchietta -USA TODAY Sports

NFL free agency has started and teams are spending like crazy. The total spend is well over $2 billion and free agency hasn’t even started yet. This increased spend is mostly due to the unprecedented $30 million increase to the cap space for 2024. The NFL made this major change in part because of a large increase in media revenue. There is truly no shortage of money in the NFL as it is the most lucrative sports league in the world. Their revenue from media rights was almost $8 billion for the 2022-23 season and rose to over $12.5 billion for 2023-24.

Notable Free Agent Signings

  • Saquon Barkley - 3 Years, $37.75 Million (Philadelphia Eagles)

  • Kirk Cousins - 4 Years, $180 Million (Atlanta Falcons)

  • Christian Wilkins - 4 Years, $110 Million (Las Vegas Raiders)

  • Xavier Mckinney - 4 Years, $68 Million (Green Bay Packers)

  • Russell Wilson - 1 Year, $1.21 Million (Pittsburgh Steelers)

Aakash Adhia - Sports Analytics Group Berkeley

Everyone knows that the NFL is a money making machine and teams spend hundreds of millions every year, but more spending doesn’t always equate to more wins. The Jacksonville Jaguars have spent way more than anyone else in the NFL since 2012 but have considerably less wins. This further proves how valuable the draft can be. Drafting and retaining good players is key for sustained success in the NFL. If you look at the graph above, the teams with the most wins developed a star QB and everything else seemed to fall into place. I guess my point is, maybe don’t get too excited when your team gets a major free agent, because like I said, more money doesn’t equal more wins.

How Much Money Does The NCAA Make From March Madness?

The most wonderful time of year isn’t Christmas it is the most magical time from mid March to the beginning of April where college basketball teams compete in the big dance. It’s the time of year where the rest of your responsibilities get put to the side and you get to enjoy good basketball. Obviously March Madness is wildly popular, but how much does the NCAA actually bring in every year from this tournament? According to Investopedia.com, the NCAA brings in just under $1 billion from the tournament. What makes this figure even more impressive is, that their entire earnings from the year is roughly $1.14 billion meaning that nearly 90% of the revenue generated for the year comes solely from March Madness.

The widespread legalization of sports betting in the United States has made this time of year a time to lose money for most Americans. In 2023, 68 million Americans wagered an estimated $15.5 billion on the tournament, according to the American Gaming Association. To put these figures into perspective, nearly 20 million MORE people bet on March Madness than they did the Super Bowl.

The craziest part in all of this? The players who play in these games get no cut of any of the revenue that is brought in during this period. With NIL becoming a thing, these star athletes are getting paid in other ways from other companies, but none of the nearly $20 billion generated during this time period ever gets back into the pockets of the athletes that make this tournament happen.

Americans Are Ruining Soccer

Getty Images

Yes, I said it. Americans are ruining soccer, and it has nothing to do with the Americans like Christian Pulisic that are playing across Europe’s top five leagues. All the problems that come with soccer has to do with owners. The shiny new thing for American businessmen is to invest in are soccer teams across Europe. The only issue is that the business model that works for American Sports teams, does not work for European soccer teams. Todd Boehly purchased Chelsea in May 2022, only 1 year removed from a Champions League victory. Since then, they have spent over $1 billion on player transfers and have won absolutely nothing.

Notable teams and their spend over the last 2 seasons:

  • Manchester City - $414.6 Million

  • Real Madrid - $209.5 Million

  • Liverpool - $314.3 Million

  • Bayern - $334 Million

  • AC Milan - $177.57 Million

What makes this spending bad is that Chelsea has not performed well on the field, even though they are spending significantly more money than any other team in Europe. The biggest problem with Americans buying soccer teams in Europe is that most of these owners know absolutely nothing about soccer. These owners are tied up into many other business ventures and see these teams as investment opportunities rather than soccer teams. The Glazers who are the American owners of Manchester United have seen the once historic club fall into irrelevance in recent years. While these two owners have essentially ruined the success of once historically successful teams, there are also some excellent American owners that care more about the success of the team than the money going into their pocket.

Some excellent American owned teams you should support:

  • Venezia FC - Brought team from 4th division to 1st division in just 5 years

  • Marseille - Brought team to Europa League Final in first year of ownership

  • Le Havre - Helped team get first promotion to 1st division in 15 years in 2023

Check out these sports related job opportunities!

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