Future of NFL in Danger If Blackouts Continue Under Goodell's Watch

Roger Goodell has put the future of the National Football League in danger with his strict enforcement of blacking out games.

Blackouts are all too familiar to fans of teams like the Bucs, Bills, Chargers, or Bengals where blackouts were a constant problem or danger in 2011. It basically means that because you did not buy a ticket to see a game, you will not see the game, because it will not be aired on television. It will not be aired on television because the team did not sell enough tickets in time.

Recently, Goodell flew up to Washington D.C. to defend the blackout policies that he follows so closely. Commissioner McDowell of the FCC called for a review of the rule, which could affect the government subsidy that the National Football League currently receives.

Goodell is officially defending the indefensible.

The logic behind blackouts is that by not allowing fans to watch games on television, you make them go buy tickets to the actual game and stadium, increasing attendance. Seems logical right?

If you started to get a little confused by that above paragraph, you are not the only one. Multiple problems exist with this reasoning.

For one, what about people that cannot physically make it to the stadium? For people that are disabled, getting to the stadium is a hassle that a lot are unwilling to put up with. Sometimes, it is even an impossibility. The same goes for elderly people. Right there is already a sizable amount of fans that have just been denied the privilege to see their favorite team, just because of something that they cannot fix.

What about simple factors like weather? Being in Tampa, I can testify to this. Some days, it is pouring rain that I simply do not want to sit in for hours. Other days, it is well above 90 degrees, which I also do not want to swelter in. I'm sure fans of all teams have similar stories. Mother Nature never aligned to sports games, so simple things like that can significantly affect ticket sales.

The blackouts are counterproductive in and of themselves. By supposedly bringing more people to the stadium, they think that it increases fan/local interest in the team. This is wrong on two facets.

Sports economists agree that blacking out games has little to no effect on ticket sales.Yep, you read that correctly. Little to none. There goes the the focal point of the league's argument right there. 

The reason it doesn't work is because denying a team more exposure creates the exact opposite effect that they are supposedly fixing. If a team is seen by more people, more fans are created because of increasing popularity.

Another thing that works against a team's favor is the high price of tickets. According to the response from sports economists:

"The NFL has the highest ticket prices in professional team sports. In 2009, the average price of tickets to regular season NFL games was about $75 compared to about $50 for basketball and hockey, and $27 for baseball.  In addition, ticket sales account for a much smaller fraction of NFL revenues (around 20 percent) than rights fees for broadcasts (around 60 percent)."

The above information reveals two big things against the blackout policy. The first being that NFL teams are already at a disadvantage to other sports when it comes to ticket sales, based on the cost of maintaining the franchise. 

The second is highlighted in the last sentence. It clearly states that broadcasting rights are more monetarily beneficial than tickets in the first place. Three times more beneficial. From this standpoint, blackouts are still unjustifiable.

Some of you might be wondering how blackouts got started in the first place. Maybe that will explain it right?

Wrong again. Historically, television has actually helped football grow to where it is today. Back in the 50's, football was struggling to stay alive. In two years, two teams folded, lending concerns to the financial security of the league. That all changed when they started to broadcast games on television. With new found popularity, the league started to grow. Fan bases began to get stronger.

Football officially exploded onto the scene in 1958 with "The Greatest Game Ever Played" between the Colts and the Giants for the NFL Championship. It was the first time a football game got widespread attention on the national level. As much as 45 million people watched the game on television. The National Football League had finally entered into the big time sports.

In fact, the game could have had more viewers, but, get this: It was blacked out in the greater New York area. The irony...it hurts.

If you haven't picked up on why blackouts hurt the league, I'll put it bluntly: By blacking out teams, you hurt revenue for teams and give loyal fans a slap in the face. NFL fans should not be subjected to this kind of iron fist rule.

Goodell and the league have yet to really give fans a better explanation than the revenue one, which has already been proven incorrect. They continue to enforce a hurtful, counter productive rule that damages fans and teams.

And that's just wrong.