To start on a positive note, for charitable organizations, it is business as usual as the NFL awards $1 million in grants to 90 players charities. Sports Illustrated reported in a recent article that in spite of the current lock-out, the NFL continued its commitment to supporting charitable organizations. Unfortunately, this may be the only positive press the NFL has received since the lock-out began March 11.
Football, whether you like it or not, is an undeniable part of American life. I was reminded of how much an impact it can have as I sat with my brother-in-law and nephew at a pre-season Steelers game. I remember getting to our seats surrounded by season ticket holders. They were like a huge family, everyone seemed to know everyone else, and though the atmosphere was tame compared to a regular season game, there was magic you couldn’t experience anywhere else. The kind you wish you could bottle up and take with you and make every experience that amazing.
David Jacober said it best in his recent article, Impact Of NFL Lockout Goes Way Beyond Just Football, no matter who you are from a Wall-street executive to a factory worker, “Football has become what religious structures used to be-a place where families and comrades can flock together for a few hours a weekend, and sometimes with total strangers to form a community around their team.” I found this connection in the least expected way. On a flight from Los Angeles to Cleveland, a man and his two grandsons were seated behind me. The boys were decked out in Steelers gear. Their grandfather was flying them for the weekend just to see a game at Heinz Field. It makes me wonder, what other sport would bring a man, especially in today’s economy, to not only purchase tickets to a game, but everything from plane tickets and hotel to food and souvenirs?
Surprisingly, news has been fairly quiet regarding the dispute between owners and players, mainly because it is off-season. The closer we get to football season, the less hope fans will have that there will indeed be a 2011 season. Even if the lock-out hasn’t affected the cities and communities that house NFL teams yet, if a solution is not found, the future looks bleak. “Anytime you take a $9 billion enterprise out of the economy, it is going to have some serious ripple effects.” (Jacober) Imagine a football town like Pittsburgh that clearly thrives on revenue brought in each season. How can a financial loss that huge be made up? The answer is, it can’t.
We all know that football will live on, but between the lost community spirit and financial gains what will the true effect of a non-existent 2011 NFL season have really? Will the league and players lose as much as they are taking from your favorite city? I guess only time will tell!
Related Articles:
http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ys-investopedia-who_else_suffers_from_nfl_lockout_040811
http://www.nfllockout.com
http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ys-investopedia-who_else_suffers_from_nfl_lockout_040811
http://www.nfllockout.com
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