Super Bowl packs an economic punch, but researchers say it's not the big score the NFL touts

Yahoo

05-02-2025

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts faces cameras on the field inside the Caesars Superdome during the Super Bowl Opening Night on Feb. 3, 2025, in New Orleans. ()
Independent research has found that the Super Bowl's impact on the economy of host cities is often vastly overstated, but the big game is bringing a boon to certain New Orleans businesses that one might not typically associate with football.
Such is the case for florists Brent Bogan and Herb Oldknow, who run Herbivore Floral Designs and create artistic flower arrangements for weddings and special events. Bogan said he's seen a 100% increase in business due to the Super Bowl with contracts for seven corporate clients this week totaling nearly $100,000.
'We have events going on at Le Pavillon, [The] Misi, Jolie, Capitol on Baronne and a few other dinners and events around the city – all corporate clients who are wining and dining their clients,' Bogan said.
Herbivore typically sees almost no business this time of year, he said, so the Super Bowl brought a welcome change in pace for the business and others who work in event décor.
The Super Bowl is also providing a boost to the rideshare and car service industry. David Rivera, a driver for a luxury transport fleet, has been busy this week shuttling corporate clients to various events.
'It makes one wish New Orleans should host a Super Bowl every year,' Rivera said.
So far not all businesses are seeing a windfall.
Restaurateur Conrad Churra said he's hoping to capitalize on the bustling activity in New Orleans. The two locations of his breakfast/brunch eatery, Wakin' Bakin', have seen mixed returns over the past few days. Sales at his French Quarter location were down Monday, but he said he saw a significant uptick on Tuesday. On the other hand, business has been slow all month at his location in Mid-City.
Cary Rogers, who owns Buffa's Bar & Restaurant on Esplanade Avenue, two blocks from Bourbon Street, said the Super Bowl has so far not brought any noticeable uptick in sales, though he said he's hoping that will change later this week.
Churra and Rogers each said they've seen noticeably fewer customers since the start of 2025 and believe the Bourbon Street terrorist attack on New Year's Day is at least partially to blame.
The Jan. 1 incident, in which an American jihadist drove a truck through a crowd of revelers on Bourbon Street, killing 14 and injuring 57, should be considered when analyzing the Super Bowl's economic impact on New Orleans, according to Alí Bustamante, a University of New Orleans professor and economist at the Roosevelt Institute.
Researchers acknowledge the Super Bowl can have a positive economic impact on a local economy but argue it's typically much lower than the NFL claims. The league commissions economic impact assessments after the event and uses the data to convince state and local governments to subsidize investments such as new stadiums, said Brad Humphreys, an economics professor at West Virginia University.
Studies that factor in the costs of those subsidies have found that cities often see little benefit from hosting a Super Bowl. A North Carolina State University report noted that the 2015 Super Bowl cost the city of Glendale, Arizona, between $579,000 and $1.2 million.
Bustamante said New Orleans didn't have to build a stadium to host the NFL championship. However, the Caesars Superdome did complete a $560 million renovation project last year thanks in large part to government subsidies. About $380 million of that came from a combination of state dollars and the Louisiana Stadium & Exposition District, which is a state agency.
The Sports Management Research Institute, a firm that works with sports leagues that include the NFL, issued a press release last week touting the huge economic impact the game will bring to New Orleans. The firm issues similar statements each year around the Super Bowl, prompting economists and academics to scrutinize the firm's research and argue host cities actually see far fewer benefits.
SMRI boasted of skyrocketing hotel rates in the New Orleans area ahead of the game with an average price of $4,625 per night for four-star accommodations and $847 per night for two-star accommodations. A search on hotel booking websites shows similarly high rates and few vacancies for the upcoming weekend even outside of the city.
'SMRI's research lends credence to the theory that the big game, and the many events leading up to it make a significant economic impact on host cities,' the firm said in its news release. It did not cite any data of the Super Bowl's impact on businesses aside from hotels.
There's little doubt one of the largest single-day sporting events attracts a lot of economic activity, estimated in the billions of dollars each year. The crux of the argument among economists has to do with where most of that money ultimately ends up and who bears the heaviest cost for the least reward.
Humphreys, the economics professor, has conducted his own studies on the Super Bowl and argues the NFL's economic impact claims are greatly overstated.
'Sky-high hotel room rates during the Super Bowl do not generate significant economic impact in the local economy in New Orleans,' Humphreys said. 'Most hotel owners do not live in the area. Hotel employees do not receive higher wages when hotels raise room rates during an event like this. The additional revenues earned by hotels during the Super Bowl represent windfall corporate profits that do not translate to local economic benefits.'
Researchers from North Carolina State University, the University of Delaware and Williams University have come to similar conclusions. Several studies argue a lot of the money from the Super Bowl doesn't stay in the host city, and that the game tends to have a 'crowding out' effect that discourages locals and other tourists from venturing into the city, which can partially offset gains from the football crowds.
Much of the money from past Super Bowls comes from ticket sales, merchandise, brand licensing and network broadcasting deals, all of which goes to the NFL rather than to local businesses of the host cities, according to the North Carolina State study. Research has not landed on a specific annual figure, but past games have made between $300 million and $1.3 billion, according to NCSU.
The studies also point out that Super Bowl host cities are top tourist destinations by their own right, and researchers argue the game merely replaces other events that would have been hosted there.
Other assessments found that Taylor Swift's Eras Tour brought more money to the local economy in Glendale, Arizona, in 2023 than the Super Bowl did when it was hosted there a month earlier, according to a Time magazine article. A later analysis from Statista broke down the numbers, showing how the two events stack up.
Jay Cicero, Greater New Orleans Sports Foundation president and Super Bowl LIX Host Committee member, pointed to a UNO study that found the 2013 Super Bowl had a $480 million economic impact on the city. A projection for this year's game hasn't yet been calculated, but Cicero said local nonprofits are already seeing benefits. For example, more than $3.5 million in grants have been awarded to 65 organizations through an Entergy Corp. community campaign tied to the Super Bowl, he said in an email.
'The sold-out hotel rooms, packed restaurants, and increased foot traffic to our small businesses are tangible visuals that solidify the game's positive economic influence right now,' Cicero said. 'This is our moment to show off what our city does best to national and international audiences, and it is that kind of platform that drives increased tourism long after Feb. 9.'