The Economics of Super Bowl XLIII
by Richard C. CrepeauIt is time once again to enter the days of the Roman numerals when excess becomes the norm, hyperbole is accepted as standard English, and the rich demonstrate in no uncertain terms that they are, and you are not. It is also when the middle class, those 85 percent of Americans who identify themselves as such, do their best to wallow in excess.
There is speculation that this Super Bowl may not measure up to the standards of decadence and waste cultivated over the years by the National Football League and those who worship at its shrines. With the economy reeling, Americans are spending less, because they have less, and some think this will slow the madness in Tampa for Super Bowl XLIII.
It is difficult to anticipate how the current economy might mute the holiday celebrations, but a cursory survey of the landscape in the run up to [1] Super Bowl XLIII offers only minor signs of a slowdown. Two of the more notable parties [2] have been cancelled, the most prominent being The Playboy Party. With the Playboy Empire already under some duress, the economic downturn no doubt put severe stress on their bottom line (no pun intended). The other cancellation of note, although certainly not in the same league as the Bunny Hutch, is the Sports Illustrated party. But then we know that print media is another sector where economic problems are not new.
It seems that the number of private and corporate jets coming to the Tampa Bay area for the festivities is down. Last year Jets.com booked 55 jet packages for Phoenix; as of Thursday, [3] there were only 18 bookings. More than 500 corporate jets landed at Super Bowl XLII. That number is not expected to be reached this year, although it is not clear if this is a function of corporate belt-tightening or image maintenance prompted by recent criticism of corporate executive excesses and the GM executive fly-in to D.C.
With or without corporate jets, it still holds, as [4] Norman Vincent Peale once said, “If Jesus were alive today, he would be at the Super Bowl.”
It may be that excess is on the wane in Tampa Bay for this edition of our National Excess Holiday, although a quick look at web sites, press reports and ads indicates there will be plenty of opportunity for the practitioners of “conspicuous consumption” and “conspicuous waste.” In fact, there is every reason to believe that Super Bowl XLIII will add to the call to rename Super Sunday as “[5] Thorstein Veblen Day.”
Starting with television, the envelope is being pushed quite hard as the [6] $3 million commercial arrives on you TV screen. Yes, for the first time, a 30-second spot will cost $3 million. Those who are paying this rate — and there is no shortage of advertisers — insist that this is a bargain given the numbers of people in the prime demographic they will reach and the boost in product sales that will result. Not only have rates increased, but the production cost of the commercials themselves continues to rise, as does the sophistication of the technology and resulting product.
DreamWorks is running a 90-second spot in [7] 3-D, promoting its new film, “Monsters v. Aliens.” The 3-D glasses are being distributed by Pepsi, another mega-player, at its store displays. Cost of production for the 3-D ad is not known, but the average cost of standard 30-second commercials is estimated at $5 million.
Among the big ticket events are the Gridiron Greats Dinner of Champions, $1,000 per ticket; the Inside the Huddle Party at Shula’s Steak House, $7,000, with one Super Bowl Ticket included; and the Giving Back Fund’s Big Game VIP Event hosted at a private residence by Ashton Kutcher at $1,000 a pop. All of these will have an overload of sports figures and celebrities in attendance.
The invitation-only events include the Maxim Party, which should more than fill the gap left by the Playboy Party; ESPN the Magazine’s NEXT VIP Gala; and of course the granddaddy of them all, The Commissioner’s Party. Appropriately, an agent will also offer a party. This year the annual [8] Leigh Steinberg Party* at the Lowry Park Zoo on Saturday afternoon will place an emphasis on the more serious side with video uplinks between the troops in Iraq and entertainment and sports figures in what is billed as the first annual (note the American optimism) Stars For Stripes Global Connection.
The party will also celebrate the formation of The Sporting Green Alliance (SGA), the sporting world’s first and only environmental activism organization focused on “greening-up sports,” endorsed by Florida Gov. Charlie Crist, eager advocate of off-shore drilling including along the Florida coast.
At the more mundane — though not necessarily less expensive — level, the Tampa Bay area will have an ample supply of prostitutes because, as a former prostitute once said, “Pimps see the Super Bowl as a moneymaking opportunity sent by God.”
Tampa, or at least some in Tampa, claims that the city is the capital of the lap dance. The Mons Venus Strip Club expects to repeat the land office [9] business it enjoyed in 2001 when Tampa hosted Super Bowl XXXV. Mons veteran Bernie Notte, who will come out of retirement during the Super Bowl festivities, earned $6,000 in four days and danced so much her feet bled. Customers paid $100 for a $25 lap dance.
The Italian Club will offer four nights of [10] themed parties at a cost of $50 to $200 each. The opener on Thursday, “The Art of Sexy VIP Party,” is a Red Carpet affair with suggested attire: “Simple Sexy.” The Sunday night affair is “I Am Legend Retired Players VIP Party, The Official After Game Old School Jam.” Suggested attire is “Just Bring it.” This party will be spread over three floors, have six DJ’s, five bars, NFL players, and live entertainment.
Indications are that the number of parties being offered and the levels of expenditure involved are not any different than what is normal for the Super Bowl. It is also likely that the number of Super Bowl parties across the country will match those of the past, be they formal or informal gatherings.
How big a factor the economic downturn is will only be known when all the numbers are crunched over the next few weeks. When it is all over, the figures of Super Bowl XXXV — during which [11] Americans consumed 8 million pounds of guacamole; 14,500 tons of chips; and antacid sales registered a 20-percent increase, will likely be surpassed.
After all, records are meant to be broken.
Correction: This story originally stated that the Leigh Steinberg Super Bowl party would feature a massage cabana and oxygen bar. Those were highlights from last year.
Posted January 30, 2009 @ 6:19 pm on PopPolitics.com
URLs in this post:
[1] Super Bowl XLIII: http://www.nfl.com/superbowl/43
[2] have been cancelled: http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1874231,00.html
[3] there were only 18 bookings: http://www.tampabay.com/news/business/airlines/article972215.ece
[4] Norman Vincent Peale: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Vincent_Peale
[5] Thorstein Veblen: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thorstein_Veblen
[6] $3 million commercial: http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/front/la-fi-superbowl27-2009jan27,0,3517306.story
[7] 3-D: http://adage.com/madisonandvine/article?article_id=134196
[8] Leigh Steinberg Party: http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/leigh-steinberg-us-army-jenny/story.aspx?guid={3C4ADD12-BD87-4
9DA-A9AB-7C7FEDDD9EE3}&dist=msr_1
[9] business it enjoyed in 2001: http://blogs.tampabay.com/wingman/2009/01/tampa-adult-bus.html
[10] themed parties: http://www2.tbo.com/content/2009/jan/29/t5-super-events/
[11] Americans consumed: http://www.mlive.com/sports/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2009/01/some_handy_tips_for_your_super.html