Portland, Oregon Expansion Team 1

Portland, Oregon Expansion Team

Dakota Chin

State University of New York at Cortland

Portland, Oregon Expansion Team 2

When deciding on where to expand a Major League Sports Franchise to, there are

a few things to consider; demographics, population, income, and potential growth. After

doing some research, a city that has favorable attributes in these areas is Portland,

Oregon. This up and coming area would see a lot of success with the expansion of an

NFL team into their market.

Portland is one of the fastest growing cities in the United States. Its population

has grown to an estimated 2.35 million people. Portland's growth was 15th-fastest among

the country's 50 largest metro areas. (Christensen, 2015, para.3) Obviously, this is

something to consider when pondering potential cities to expand a franchise into. The

more people in the area the more potential fans. The Portland Metro had the 10th-

highest rate of domestic migration out of the 50 largest urban areas, the Census Bureau

estimated. (Christensen, 2015, para.5) This shows the City of Portland is becoming more

centralized so having that many people in one area would make it easy for an NFL team

to not only advertise and market themselves but also to sell tickets by building the

stadium somewhere accessible from the city. Population growth could be beneficial to a

Major League Franchise but only if that population is prosperous enough to have money

to spend on entertainment like sports.

The chart below shows the real median household income for Portland, Oregon,

compared to the medians of the state of Oregon and the U.S.

1 Year Change 3 Year Change

2015

US $55,775 +3.83% +5.17%

Oregon $54,148 +5.89% +6.70%
Portland $63,850 +5.86% +8.55%
(Departmentofnumbers.com, 2016)
Portland, Oregon Expansion Team 3

As you can see not only is the median income higher but its also growing at a rate faster

than both the U.S. and the rest of the State of Oregon. This is due in large part to the

amount of jobs being created in the emerging city. Since the recession of 2008 Portland

has regained more than doubled the amount of jobs it lost as shown in the graph below.

Not only is Portland, Oregon creating jobs, but they are also higher paying then the

federal average as shown in the graphs below.

Portland, Oregon Expansion Team 4

(Graphs from (Oregonmetro.gov, 2016))

These figures are important to look at because the trends of Portland are showing how

they will continue to have economic growth. This thriving market is somewhere an NFL

team could see a lot of financial success.

On top of these statistics, Portland is an area that has sports built into its culture.

Portland houses the headquarters of one of the largest sports brands in the world with

Adidas, and its right down the road from the headquarters of its closest competitor Nike.

Portland is also home to two professional sports teams, the Portland Trail Blazers'

Basketball Team and the Portland Timbers' Soccer Team.

The success of the Trail Blazers and the Timbers shows the area is not only capable of

supporting a Major League Franchise but also that they can be a leader in terms of

economic success. The Timbers are worth $210 million and had a revenue of $39

million in 2015, which is third among the top 10 most valuable teams in MLS,

(Goldberg, 2016, para.2) and if you think thats impressive the Portland Trail

Blazers ranked No. 12 in Forbes' 2014 NBA Franchise Valuations, worth an estimated

$587 million. The Trail Blazers were estimated to have turned a $30 million profit that
Portland, Oregon Expansion Team 5

year. (Golliver, 2014, para.1). The Trail Blazers were able to be so profitable because

they have such a loyal fan base. In 2014 the Trail Blazers ranked fourth in the NBA in

terms of attendance averaging 19,829 people per game and on top of that they had a 195

game home sellout streak. (Golliver, 2014 para.2) This is good news for a league looking

to expand into Portland because it shows they have loyal fans that will attend games

consistently.

The largest revenue generator in sports is television revenue and because the NFL

shares its broadcasting revenues, Portland is a city they will want to expand into. Portland

ranks 22nd in the top 100 television markets, and if the NFL were to expand a team into

this area they would be able to negotiate for higher revenues in their broadcasting deals.

(Stationindex.com, N.d.) These deals could go for billions of dollars and this is due to the

fact that the marginal revenue product of broadcasting rights extends beyond just the

value of ads sold to advertisers. (Fort, 2006, p.64)

If the NFL were to add an expansion team or relocate a current team, Portland,

Oregon would have to be a city on the top of their consideration list. Portland has

everything you could want in a market. They have a large population with a growing

income, a high median income, and they have already proven they are capable of

supporting professional sports franchises. With these characteristics proving the team

themselves can be successful, it is also important to note they could bring the league

revenue through their broadcasting deals because of their large market. With all things

considered Portland, Oregon is a city with a lot of potential growth that should be

considered for an NFL Expansion Team.

Portland, Oregon Expansion Team 6

References

Christensen, N. (2015, March 26). Portland region grows to 2.35 million residents,

Census estimates, with newcomers leading the way. Retrieved November 02, 2016,

from http://www.oregonmetro.gov/news/portland-region-grows-235-million-

residents-census-estimates-newcomers-leading-way

Fort, R.D. (2006). Sports economics. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.

Goldberg, J. (2016, September 07). Portland Timbers are reportedly seventh most

valuable team in MLS. Retrieved November 02, 2016, from

http://www.oregonlive.com/timbers/index.ssf/2016/09/portland_timbers_are_seventh

_m.html

Golliver, B. (2014, January 22). Forbes: Blazers Rank No. 12 In NBA Franchise Value.

Retrieved November 03, 2016, from

http://www.blazersedge.com/2014/1/22/5335268/blazers-climb-to-no-12-in-forbes-

2014-nba-franchise-valuations
Portland, Oregon Expansion Team 7

N.A, (2014, April, 24) Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro Oregon Household Income.

Retrieved November 02, 2016, from

http://www.deptofnumbers.com/income/oregon/portland/

N.A. Top 100 Television Markets - Station Index. (n.d.). Retrieved November 03, 2016,

from http://www.stationindex.com/tv/tv-markets

N.A. You are here: A snapshot of where the Portland region's working. (2016, January

12). Retrieved November 03, 2016, from http://www.oregonmetro.gov/news/you-are-

here-snapshot-where-portland-regions-working