The Kansas City Chiefs had the best NFL record this season, and two seasons ago, and a couple of years before that, and in the last seven years in total. They won championships in 2019, 2022 and 2023 and, with a victory on February 9, they can become the first team in the history of the NFL with a Tricampeonato of the Super Bowl.
But although Chiefs are favorites for 1.5 points for next Sunday against Philadelphia Eagles, they have long been losers in financial terms.
In the most recent list forbes Of the most valuable NFL teams, Kansas City was 24 with 4,850 million dollars, 16 stalls and $ 1,750 million behind Philadelphia (number 8, 6.6 billion dollars). The disparity would be even more evident if the sale of an 8% participation by the EAGLs last month is considered, with a reported assessment of 8,300 million dollars (with the proviso that the prices of small portions of equipment generally not they translate into the figures of control participation transactions).
Regardless of the figure used, the Chiefs have not won the financial battle between both teams since 2001, two years before the Lincoln Financial Field was inaugurated in Philadelphia and transform the economy of the Eagles. And despite having built a dynasty during the last decade, Kansas City has fallen below the NFL average assessment every year since Forbes He began to classify professional football teams in 1998.
A high score duel
Since Forbes began to value NFL teams in 1998, the Chiefs have revalued 1,790%, but the Eagles have risen 2,550%.
That could be a surprise for anyone who knows the Chiefs mainly for the stellar power of the Patrick Mahomes field and the closed wing Travis Kelce, the marketing favorites that won a place among the 10 best paid players of the NFL this season this season , or have seen Kansas City crush his competence in the field, with 10 consecutive appearances in the playoffs and five trips to the Super Bowl in the last six years. In the NFL, however, winning does not guarantee large numbers on the financial score, and losing is not always bad for business. Do not look beyond the Dallas Cowboys, who won a title for the last time 29 years ago, but they are the only sports team in the world that is worth more than $ 10 billion.
“Some income will be sensitive to the performance of the team,” says Steve Vogel, executive director of the Us Bank Sports Finance Group, “but the NFL model allows less volatility. And so the teams can absorb bad times much more easily than in other leagues. ”
Last season, according to estimates forbes each of the 32 NFL teams took home more than 400 million dollars in national league agreements, including sponsorships and a package of media rights that should pay more than 126 billion dollars in 11 years. For all teams, except cowboys, that figure represented more than half of its total income.
The NFL teams also have limitations regarding the direct benefits they obtain from the hits in the postseason, since the League collects the vast majority of the income of the playoffs parties and redistributes them in equal parts. The stipend may not cover all the expenses that a good streak entails. “Normally, when the teams win the Super Bowl, for a brief period of time, they actually have a negative net financial result,” says Marc Ganis, president of the SportsCorp consultant, who is often called the “33rd owner” of the NFL due to its close links with which they make decisions in American football.
In the long term, winning produces a larger and more enthusiastic followers base, and additional demand allows the equipment to increase ticket prices and attract a broader group of sponsors. But in reality it requires sustained success, such as the dynastic streak of the New England Patriots from 2001 to 2019, which included 17 participations in the playoffs and six victories in the Super Bowl. “During that successful period, of course, some growth is seen,” says Edwin E. Draughan, partner of the Park Lane Sports Investment Bank, “but the creation of long -term value will occur towards the end and then.”
For now, the Chiefs have more than duplicate their value since Mohamses assumed as its titular field marshal in 2018, and rose 1,790% throughout the 26 years of history of the valuation list forbes more than three times the growth of the S&P 500 at that time. But Kansas City is still behind the Eagles with their specific income of the team ($ 187 million against $ 246 million last season, according to estimates forbes ). And the 8.2x income multiple behind the valuation forbes Of the Chiefs is behind the 10.2x of the Eagles, which shows that potential investors are less interested in the franchise and their income growth prospects.
According to Forbes Philadelphia has advantage in all the main income flows (from sponsorship to ticket sale, concessions and more) and was located in the upper third of the NFL in almost all aspects last season. The Chiefs, on the other hand, occupied the ninth place in rights name of the stadium, merchandise and parking, but in general they were below the league average in other aspects.
“It’s the market,” says Ganis. “The Philadelphia market is much larger, more strong, more diverse than the Kansas City market, so Eagles can sell everything, from suites to rights of name, advertising, sponsorships and even tickets for a significantly more price high”. With Philadelphia in the eighth place at the national level with a population of Metropolitan Statistical Area of 6.2 million, compared to the 2.2 million Kansas City, which occupies the 31st position, the city of the fraternal push also has the advantage in Team assessments forbes For MLB (No. 7 against No. 28) and MLS (No. 12 against No. 16).
In addition, the Eagles “have invested a lot in their stadium,” says Vogel. “The Chiefs have been a little more limited considering how old that stadium is.” Only two NFL fields have been in operation for longer than the Kansas City Arrowhead Stadium, which opened its doors in 1972.
Naturally, Chiefs are trying to do something about it. Last year, they presented plans for a renewal of Arrowhead of 800 million dollars, but in April the taxpayers of Jackson County rejected a sales tax initiative that would have financed the project. While the Chiefs consider alternatives for a renewal or a new stadium, they sent an email survey to fans last month in search of comments on possible characteristics and comforts.
From the team’s perspective, the positive side is clear: an increase in income thanks to luxury suites and community clubs, areas in which Kansas City collectively occupied the 25th position in the NFL last season, according to estimates forbes . Chiefs have joined a trend that extends to the entire sector by creating eight new clubs in recent years, but, ultimately, “they can’t do much” with the space they have, says Draughan.
Meanwhile, Chiefs have been thinking about how to transcend their stadium and market. In the last three years, they have acquired marketing rights in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Mexico of the NFL, which regulates the international efforts of the teams. “We have a chief coach of the Hall of Fame in his first election, a field marshal member of the Hall of Fame in his first election, a closed wing member of the Hall of Fame in his first election,” said the president of the Chiefs, Mark Donovan, a Forbes last February. “If we do not aspire to be the world’s team, then we have failed. We have to take advantage of that. ”
Until now, the results have been reflected in the expansion and recognition of the brand. Donovan said last year that Kansas City’s revenues in the three European countries had been approximately one million dollars by 2023 and that the Chiefs hoped to reach the equilibrium point there in 18 months.
But even if that initiative does not work (and even if the Chiefs remain the 24. most valuable team in American football forever), they are still in a good position. Only 15 sports teams not belonging to the NFL are more valuable, and only 18 were more profitable, according to estimates forbes . And the combination of team scarcity and the perspective of even more lucrative media rights agreements in the future make Vogel optimistic about the growth of NFL.
“From my position, working with the central offices and the owners, no one is too worried about their position from a classification perspective,” he says. “The owners are working together in macro growth.”
Additional information from Justin Teitelbaum y Justin Birnbaum .
This article was originally published by Forbes Us.
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