Saturday 4 June 2011

Who Benefits The Most From A Long NFL Lockout

Autumn is America is dominated by football. Between the NCAA and NFL football dominates the sports scene throughout the autumn. There are other sports going on but the best they can hope for is to be second fiddle to football. So which sports organization stands to gain the most should the NFL lockout extend well into the autumn.

The obvious answer would seem to be the NCAA. The schools and conferences (who do the actual scheduling) are smart enough to set start times to TBA. Which means it would be easy for a few schools to move some games to Sunday to capitalize on the lack of NFL games. Still though, NCAA football is already close to its saturation point. While they will benefit there are those who can benefit more.

The NHL will get some traction with the NFL lockout. Their regular season starts in October. Lack of NFL games will give them more attention from the national and various local sports media outlets. I think though the NHL has more to gain from the inevitable NBA lockout. The NHL is a 30 team league that plays 80 regular season games and lets 16 teams (over half) into the playoffs. Early season games are hard to get up for unless you are a hardcore obsessed hockey fan.

There are touring sports like PGA golf and NASCAR which can benefit. The big golf tournaments are pretty much done by autumn which will make it hard for them to get a lot more attention. NASCAR should do pretty good with an NFL lockout. The "Chase For the Cup" will be going on in NASCAR during the autumn. Still though, there is one organization which can benefit more.

For year the MLB (Major League Baseball) playoffs have been overshadowed by early regular season NFL.  Unless you live in New York or a city with a team in the MLB playoffs there is very little interest. Even in many cities the NFL gets more attention than a local baseball team in the playoffs. Without the NFL to compete with the 2011 MLB playoffs could be the most watched in a generation.

30 comments:

  1. I play football, so this is relevent to my interests. I think the CFL will benefit the most, just because I'm Canadian and I'm taking a biased view of this issue. Go Riders!

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  2. Indeed. I remember the network showing CFL during the last strike. Agreed, the NCAA will be the principal benefactor despite the fact that it doesn't really compete with the NFL for TV Ratings since NCAA games are primarily played on Saturdays. The NCAA should be a boost in merchandising and attendance.
    I agree with Ray Lewis. People are gonna start 'criming' if they don't get their regular dose of Sunday Football. It's either that, or stay at home and help the wife around the house. Or go to Home Depot for some flooring maybe even Bath Bed and Beyond, only if there's time. ;)

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  3. nice blog, I have no idea tbh

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  4. Here is my description of every CFL game" "oh, here comes the punter/kicker. . . . again"

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  5. Great blog. Just found it, will follow and read regularly!

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  6. So much revenue is going to be lost is this extends into regular season.

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  7. They just need to kiss and make up already.

    Great blog, keep it up!

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  8. I feel that I benefit the most from an NFL lockout. That's just the meds talking tho.

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  9. I love this! come see me for morning coffee :) I love new friends

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  10. As a baseball fan, it's definitely true that fall baseball gets outshined by the beginning of football/

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  11. I agree, might be good for the other event

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  12. Basketball is defiantly my favourite sport, and I'm from the UK!

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  13. I would still be shocked if they miss any regular season. But if they do, I think it will be baseball that gains the most. My interest in baseball usually fades once the NFL season starts.

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  14. Awesome blog, keep up the good work

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  15. nobody will benefit from a lockout

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  16. I never thought of it that way. NCAA has the spotlight now!

    Great work.

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  17. Didn't this recently happen to the NHL? Like, a few years ago.

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  18. very releative to my interests... thanks for letting me follow you this morning with my COFFEE :)

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  19. NFL lockout is big business in every way.

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  20. Nice site
    Would still be shocked if they miss any regular season. But if they do, I yes think it will be baseball that gains the most.

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  21. Good write up on this, it's a sticky situation.

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  22. Haven't been a great fan of football, but i might read this some time later!

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  23. Love following the NFL so I suppose an NFL lockout would be big. Nice post!

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  24. nfls not my cup of tea :)

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  25. I enjoy Baseball over NFL, so I don't agree with NFL locking out Baseball...

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  26. Oh man i love these NFL games. Keep on posting and ill keep following you :)

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