This Basketball Economy

I am asked all the time how the economy is affecting The Flash and professional basketball.

I hear this buzz that movie attendance is up because people need to find a way to escape the everyday drama. I hear that other entertainment is doing great including sports which are untouchable.

This would lead you to believe that when it comes to a low cost provider like the Flash, we should be killing it. I mean you can go to a Flash game for less than a movie.

Let me tell you, it has taken it's toll and we see the effects. We have seen softness in our attendance and particularly in the speed at which our fans have been willing to renew their season tickets. To understand the business of minor league professional sports we survive on sponsorships and season tickets. That doesn't mean people don't 'walk up' to the gate and buy tickets but it accounts for 200-500 tickets per game.

So if you are a season ticket holder, renew early.

On the flip side, our sponsors have been great this year. In fact, sponsorships are up 11% year over year but I am certain we need to see some recovery in the economy or that number could easily go down next year.

What most have learned who work in sports is that you get to work in something you love but it is still work. You get to go wild when we win (like we did Monday) in OT, but on Tuesday we face the same challenges everyone else does. The economy is unforgiving and it is requiring a more conservative approach even though I have no desire to play this conservatively.

Brandt Andersen