Sports Teams and Clubs NAICS 711211

Mar 11, 2025 - Tariffs May Impact Sports Businesses

• A recent analysis by Sportico examines how the Trump Administration’s tariff plans may affect sports-related businesses in the US, including potentially weaker consumer spending, fluctuating strength of the US dollar, and higher costs on imported goods. According to the analysis, the sports industry may not be able to insulate itself from broader inflation likely to be caused by tariffs, which worries some executives. Consumers may reduce discretionary spending if they feel pressured by overall cost increases. A weaker dollar can hurt businesses that buy goods in foreign currencies. National Hockey League (NHL) clubs based in Canada may be affected as the Canadian dollar is weakening against the US dollar due to the expected economic impact of US tariffs. Some sports executives said they may find tariffs hitting them in unexpected areas, such as the price of soda and hot dogs at games, as concessions suppliers expect to be impacted.
• Professional sports leagues are incorporating more automated officiating systems with AI capabilities into their games to improve accuracy and reduce the number of controversial calls. This spring, Major League Baseball debuted its Automated Ball-Strike (ABS) system in games, according to Sportico. Teams can challenge a home plate umpire’s call twice per game to use the ABS to review any ball or strike call. The system is in use at 13 ballparks for spring training games. The earliest the system would be incorporated into regular season games would be 2026. Meanwhile, the National Basketball Association (NBA) is hiring a team of people to oversee the automated officiating capabilities at games, according to USA Today. In the past season, the NBA partnered with Sony’s Hawk-Eye system to assist with out-of-bounds and goaltending calls. The National Football League plans to use Hawk-Eye for its “line to gain” technology in preseason games for a second year to call first-downs in its upcoming preseason games, according to NBC News. The technology is expected to cut down on controversial decisions and speed up the time to make the calls since workers will not need to move the chains for measurement.

• The Buffalo Bills and Miami Dolphins teams sold stakes of their teams to private equity investors in December 2024, about five months after the National Football League (NFL) voted to allow private equity investment in franchises, according to a report in SportsPro. Arctos Partners bought a 10% stake in the Buffalo Bills, and Ares Management acquired a 10% stake in the Dolphins; a 10% stake is the maximum allowed under the new NFL rules. A consortium of owners also collectively acquired 10.6% of the Bills in a recent deal. The Las Vegas Raiders and the Philadelphia Eagles are also approved to sell minority stakes in their teams.
• The NFL is planning to have eight international regular season games in 2025 after having five international games in the 2024 season, according to the Sports Business Journal. In 2024, the league held games in Sao Paulo, Brazil; Munich, Germany; and three games in London. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said next year’s international games could include trips to Spain, Mexico, Brazil, Germany, and Ireland. The league has said its goal is to have 16 international games each season.