The Relationship Between the Industrial Sports Complex and the Media Machine

In a perfect world, there would be no relationship between the pure pursuit of sports and the consumer media machine – and that would be true even with the existence of professional sports. But as wonderful as the world can be, we don’t live in a perfect world and these two institutions are as entwined as they can possibly be. However, in our often ad-blind society we can easily fall into the habit of not realizing how closely connected the gears of the consumer machine and the fuel of the industrial sports complex are. As with most things, it’s important to take the time to step back and remind yourself that not everything about sports is designed to make you feel inspired (or frustrated!). In some cases, they’re designed to make you buy more, more and more. If you feel as though you’ve begun to forget this fact – or you want a primer to draw attention to the relationship for somebody else – we’ve summed up the primary ways below that the industrial sports complex and consumer society are in bed together.

We Shouldn’t Have to Mention Branded Team Gear and “Stuff” Purchases …

… Because it is so obvious, but this list wouldn’t be complete if we didn’t. We’ve mentioned several times that there’s nothing wrong with wanting to own a team jersey or other memorabilia. But the entire professional, college and even high school sports complex is designed to make you think that you’re only a true fan if you own all of the possible items branded with your favorite team or teams’ logo. And that list of merchandise with branded team elements is more or less endless. As a team fan, you are exposed to messaging about purchasing team gear via every channel – from watching on TV to seeing a game live. And the marketing is brilliant with limited editions and collector’s items. A huge portion of the revenue that sports team and institutions make is from the licensing fee on merchandise. It’s a critical part of the revenue mix. And it has nothing to do with the sport (or fandom) at all – it’s all about addictive consumerism and cash.

TV Advertising Revenue

This is a relationship that truly shows the twisted association between consumer society, the media and the industrial sports complex. Sports team, organizations and institutions don’t directly make money from commercials and advertisements that get shown on TV when their games are shown. But they are paid a licensing fee by the television station for the right to televise the game. That licensing fee is determined and negotiated by the estimated amount of ad revenue the television station or network will be able to generate from that game. Obviously, there’s benefit to the sports organization or institution for having their team shown on national or local TV to expand their fan base – who will then buy merchandise and/or tickets. But the bulk of revenue for most sports organizations actually comes from advertising/media revenue. For example, the estimated average amount spent by companies buying thirty seconds of commercial time during the NFL Super Bowl in 2013 was a record high $3.7 million dollars. Because the network can make so much money in ad revenue from showing the game, the NFL charges them a higher licensing fee to show the game. Everybody makes money – and you get “important” societal messages about what you should buy (hint: it’s beer, soft drinks, cars and Disney products) while you watch the biggest sports game of the year. This relationship exists on varying levels for almost every type of sports.

All That Other Advertising

Of course, television isn’t the only place that your average sports team or organization will subject you to advertising. Team websites and streaming sites are plastered with advertising, and if you attend a game live pretty much every corner of the stadium will have advertisements for you to see. In fact, when you look at the numbers, actual ticket sales to see sporting events pale in comparison to the amount of money sports teams make from advertising and merchandising sales. We’ll be honest- we can’t help but think that that’s a little bit sad.

And, Of Course, Endorsements

It’s not just that the industrial sports complex relies on the consumer media machine to make money. It also operates in the other direction. Companies regularly hire sports celebrities to endorse their products, paying them millions to appear in local and national commercials. These endorsements begin a dangerous pattern of convincing people to buy “stuff” based largely on the endorsement of somebody who may not even use the product themselves. This phenomenon isn’t limited to sports celebrities, obviously, but it does highlight the two-way street of sports and consumer messaging feeding off each other.

Could Either Survive Without the Other?

When you back up and look at it, the reality is that the consumer media machine would be just fine if the industrial sports complex did not exist. It would lose a huge revenue stream, but it has so many tributaries feeding into the main body of water that is the consumer media that it would simply find a way to draw more revenue from another source. But the likelihood is that at this point the industrial sports complex wouldn’t exist as we know it if it weren’t for the revenue it derives from the consumer media engine. You would still have professional sports, but the spectacle and salaries and scope would have to be reduced. And at this point, most Americans are more than happy to trade some consumer messaging for “big” sports. We’re hoping that as awareness increases this relationship’s power decreases however.

Sports aren’t inherently a bad thing, even in a professional format. But the relationship between influential sports teams and athletes and consumer messaging is powerful and in some regards a dangerously influential one. Be sure to be aware of the points where these two establishments cross over so that you can make every effort to separate their existence in your own life and to raise awareness in others around you.

Did we miss a point where consumerism and sports intersect that you want to share with us? If so, just tell us about it on one of the social media channels below.