Show them the money.
In case you have not noticed, a number of sports organizations have decided not to use a bidding process to award megaevents such as the Olympics or the Super Bowl. The International Olympic Committee has decided it is better for everyone if it just talks to markets of interest and then award the event to some area. The National Football League is doing the same thing when it comes to awarding an area the Super Bowl. The negotiations are simple. The IOC and NFL have a plan. Tell a prospective market, accept the plan or we move on. The National Basketball Association Commissioner Adam Silver has announced the league is interested in expanding and the two places that are being targeted are Las Vegas and Seattle.
The National Hockey League is talking with a potential owner in Texas, Dan Friedkin, and will decide if Houston or Austin along with Friedkin’s money is a good market for the league. Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred claims his owners want to add two teams but the industry needs a new collective bargaining agreement, figure out what to do with television rights and money and resolve the stadium situation in the Tampa Bay market. MLB officials have not decided how the expansion process will operate. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman claimed that his business has received expressions of interest for an expansion franchise from Alpharetta, Georgia, Phoenix, Cincinnati, Omaha, Nebraska and Kansas City. Bettman said potential owners in Alpharetta, which is north of Atlanta, and Phoenix are not ready to discuss a bid. The league continues to bypass Québec City which is a hockey rich area but the money isn’t there. Friedkin is willing to spend $2 billion on a franchise and another $1.5 billion for a venue. It is how the game is played.
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