The disadvantages typically relate to the cost of the infrastructure -- arenas and stadiums cost hundreds of millions of dollars, and in some cases even roadways and offramps to the facilities are built at public expense. The worst-case scenario is when a city builds an arena to attract a team, but fails to do so. Kansas City is an example, having built for an NHL/NBA team that has never arrived. Hamilton, Ontario built an NHL arena in the 1980s but has only attracted minor league hockey. There is the potential, then, that major investments can result in little more than a white elephant.

The benefits differ between leagues as well. The NFL scores high for exposure but has fewer games, whereas MLB has a large number of games. The NHL is only a driver of substantial revenue for hockey markets, so it works better in Columbus than it has in...
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