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from the issue of September 1, 2005
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Study shows athletics drew $114.3 million to Lincoln-area
Husker impact gauged
BY TOM SIMONS, UNIVERSITY COMMUNICATIONS
Like clockwork every fall for more than 40 years, Cornhusker football fans have poured through the gates of UNL's Memorial Stadium to cheer on their favorite team.
The Big Red Nation - through support of Nebraska football in particular, and Cornhusker athletics in general - are enjoying more than just athletic entertainment. They also have a significant impact on the Nebraska economy, particularily in the Lincoln-metropolitan area.
A study completed this summer by UNL's Bureau of Business Research, on behalf of the athletic department, showed that the overall economic impact of Cornhusker athletics on Lincoln's economy in the 2004-05 fiscal year was $114.3 million. That includes $41.2 million in worker income, 2,840 jobs (one-third of which are athletic department event or concession jobs) and $595,000 in direct sales tax revenue for the City of Lincoln.
The football program alone had a total impact of $87.1 million, including $31.2 million in labor income, 2,130 jobs and $498,000 in direct sales tax revenue.
The study, headed by UNL economist Eric Thompson, director of the Bureau of Business Research, examined the economic impact of Husker athletics in two broad categories - annual expenditures of the overall Nebraska athletic program and expenditures of fans attending Husker home games in football, baseball, volleyball and men's basketball.
In his report, Thompson noted that more than one million fans attend Nebraska home athletic contests annually, including more than one-half million who attend home football games. Furthermore, Thompson said fan spending connected with these contests generates substantial expenditure at restaurants, hotels, retail stores and gasoline stations.
The study also examined the impact of Husker athletics on the statewide economy under both conservative and optimistic assumptions.
Under the conservative assumption (where spending by Nebraska residents that is directly tied to Cornhusker athletics does not contribute to economic impact), the annual statewide impact was $48 million in 2004-05. Under the optimistic assumption (where such spending does contribute to economic impact), the figure for 2004-05 was $155.1 million.
"Reality lies somewhere between the conservative and optimistic assumptions," Thompson said. "The statewide impact is felt in Lincoln, but also in Omaha and other Nebraska communities."
The report noted that the study's $114.3 million figure actually would be higher if it was conducted in a year in which Nebraska had more than six home football games (in future years, Nebraska will host seven and sometimes eight home games); if it included ticket purchases, donations and concessions purchased by Lincoln-area fans (the conservative view assumes that money would have been spent in Lincoln anyway); if it included game-day spending in Lincoln by fans not attending the games; if it included the construction of the Tom and Nancy Osborne Athletic Complex (the study estimated a two-year impact of the project to be $64.8 million); and if it included the impact of NCAA Regional and Super Regional baseball tournaments (estimated at $1.1 million).
The report concluded by predicting rapid growth in the overall impact of the Cornhusker football program over the next few years. The prediction was based on the expected increase in the number of home games and an increase of 6,500 in Memorial Stadium's seating capacity beginning with the 2006 season (73,918 in 2005).
For fiscal year 2006-07, the report predicts that fan spending will increase to $44.1 million, up 25 percent from the $35.4 million measured in 2004-05.
The study used Athletic Department records to determine the department's expenditures in 2004-05.
To estimate fan spending at home football games, it averaged data from recent studies at four other schools, Louisiana State, Ohio State, Penn State and Tennessee. For basketball, baseball and volleyball, the study used results of a survey conducted at the NCAA regional baseball tournament at Haymarket Park in June and men's basketball and other sport spending data from the Ohio State study.
The bureau looked at both the direct and indirect impacts of Athletic Department and fan spending on the economy, utilizing the IMPLAN Pro software that economists throughout the nation use to determine multiplier effects. The multiplier effect occurs as new money brought into the area (the direct effect) by the Athletic Department supports additional business and employment.
A copy of the report, "The Economic Impact of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Athletic Department," is available for download at UNL's University Communications FTP site ftp://ucommxsrv1.unl.edu.
Economic Power of Red
The UNL study into the economic draw of Husker athletics found:
• The Huskers had a $114.3 million economic impact in the Lincoln-area during 2004-05
• The Huskers' statewide economic impact was between $48 million and $155.1 million in 2004-05
GO TO: ISSUE OF SEPTEMBER 1
NEWS HEADLINES FOR SEPTEMBER 1
'Father of Computing' retires after 50 years of UNL service
Husker impact gauged
Morrill Hall to unveil new exhibit
Perlman to chart academic objectives
Chancellor offers welcome as term begins
Early Christian expert to open E.N. Thompson series
FROM THE ARCHIVES
Service Awards 2005
Tolstoy, John Wayne featured in 200th Olson seminar
U.S. foreign policy experts discuss European perspective
732190S34836X
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