Despite wining only two games last season, Carolina Panthers illustrated an increase in revenue, a stark difference from the rest of the leagues. While it was expected that the team could lose its operating income because of the losses it went through last season, the team emerged as one of the teams that profited greatly in the 2010/2011 fiscal period. According to Forbes, Carolina Panthers are ranked in the 15th position, down from the 12th position held by the team last year (1).
The drop in the team’s ranking is alleged to be a reflection of its economic status but this is not true. This is because over the last one year, the company has managed to increase its operating income from a low of $15 million to $31.2 million in one year (Forbes 1).
The increase in the operating income comes at a time when the league experienced financial difficulties. Therefore, it was unpredicted that Carolina Panthers could have made such an impact. In addition, the spending by the owner on new players this year is also perceived to have contributed to the increased operating income.
Despite the seemingly increased spending on new players at the beginning of 2011, the players’ expenses were lesser than the ones experienced in the year 2010. In fact, the players’ expenses had been increasing over the years, only to drop this year to $124 million from the previous value of $148 million in 2010.
The operating income rise was very steep, since it doubled the previous value that was recorded in 2010 (Forbes 1). The increase in operating cost has made the owner to show appreciation to the fans by hiring new and experienced players.
The team has lost its market value although by a small margin. This is because the market value share dropped from 1,037 million dollars in 2010 to 1,002 million dollars this year. The reason for the reduced market share can be attributed to the significant drop in the wins-to-player ratio, from 88 to 26 in the year 2011 (Forbes 1).
From this reduction in the performance of the team, there has been decreased support that has eventually led to a decline in the support. The differences in the market share have however not affected the revenue that is generated by the company.
The major corporate sponsors are PepsiCo, Carolinas Medical Center, US Airways and Anheuser-Bush InBev, while the naming rights sponsor is the Bank of America. According to Forbes report, the company has revenue per fan of $55 (1). There have been several transfers in the team and these have been focused on making the fans to make increased contribution to the team.
According to the valuation breakdown the team has under sports are equivalent to $637 million, with a market equivalent of $162 million, stadium equivalent of $144 million and a brand equivalent of $60 million (Forbes 1). These revenues have impacted on the operating income generated by the company.
Due to the current financial crisis, the league has had trouble and the team was therefore not expected to generate as much operating income as it did. The increase in the operating income did not however influence the team to increase its rankings among the most profitable teams in the football league.
The most valuable teams are ranked according to revenue and market share and Carolina Panthers are expected to increase the performance in order to rise up the rankings.
The team is therefore expected to hire more experienced players that will ensure the performance is enhanced and ensure that last year’s performance is not reflected this coming season. There is great expectation among the fans for the team to increase the quality of its players by hiring individuals who are more experienced and qualified.
Work Cited
Forbes. “NFL Team Valuations: #15 Carolina Panthers.” Forbes.com. LLC, 2011. Web.