3 ms·

I don't follow any sport, but I actually don't understand why UEFA and FIFA are non-profits when all the American leagues (MLB, NBA, NFL) are for-profit corpora

I don't follow any sport, but I actually don't understand why UEFA and FIFA are non-profits when all the American leagues (MLB, NBA, NFL) are for-profit corporations. It seems to work well in America.

charlieyu1 2mo ago
Are they? Their revenues are limited and they can’t really extend their influence outside USA. Meanwhile European games are watched globally
tmgldn 2mo ago
Because they were designed to be decentralised federations, atop the footballing body in each country. More generally, the US is the most capitalist country, whereas the rest of the world does automatically see capitalism as justified, superior or inevitable. Lastly, football is a grassroots participation sport that is seen by its fans as more of a religion than a conventional act of entertainment. Of course, religion in the US is also often for-profit, but hopefully you get the point.
overfeed 2mo ago
> It seems to work well in America. Does it? Who does it work out well for? Franchises continuously extort tax-payer funds for stadia,some team switches host cities every few years, and the for-profit corporations are legal cartels that decides who gets to own a team. The number of ad-breaks is horrendous to anyone who's watched sports elsewhere.
- NetMageSCW 2mo ago
  How exactly do they extort tax-payer funds?
  - pibaker 2mo ago
    "Use tax money to build us a new stadium, or we will relocate to Vegas. Do you want to be known by the voters as the governor who gave up our beloved sportsball team? No? Then better pay up."
Normal_gaussian 2mo ago
MLB & NFL only changed to for-profit organisations somewhat recently (2007, 2015). afaict NBA has always been for-profit. Internationally the standard is non-profits. Most sports have both their international organisations and highest standard of play organisations as non-profits - football, tennis, golf, cricket. The international components of baseball, american football, and basketball are all non-profits (though they are lower standards of play than the US internal leagues).
paxys 2mo ago
American sports leagues are also non-profit organizations. Profits go to the individual teams. So no, FIFA should not be run by private equity firms.
arbitrary_name 2mo ago
imo, usa has the worst sports culture of any country I've lived in (6 so far). Oakland Raiders? not anymore! teams just leave to another city if the money is right. craziness. the sheer number of ads and marketing. what are you smoking?

charlieyu1 2mo ago

Are they? Their revenues are limited and they can’t really extend their influence outside USA. Meanwhile European games are watched globally

tmgldn 2mo ago

Because they were designed to be decentralised federations, atop the footballing body in each country. More generally, the US is the most capitalist country, whereas the rest of the world does automatically see capitalism as justified, superior or inevitable. Lastly, football is a grassroots participation sport that is seen by its fans as more of a religion than a conventional act of entertainment. Of course, religion in the US is also often for-profit, but hopefully you get the point.

overfeed 2mo ago

> It seems to work well in America. Does it? Who does it work out well for? Franchises continuously extort tax-payer funds for stadia,some team switches host cities every few years, and the for-profit corporations are legal cartels that decides who gets to own a team. The number of ad-breaks is horrendous to anyone who's watched sports elsewhere.

NetMageSCW 2mo ago
How exactly do they extort tax-payer funds?
- pibaker 2mo ago
  "Use tax money to build us a new stadium, or we will relocate to Vegas. Do you want to be known by the voters as the governor who gave up our beloved sportsball team? No? Then better pay up."

Normal_gaussian 2mo ago

MLB & NFL only changed to for-profit organisations somewhat recently (2007, 2015). afaict NBA has always been for-profit. Internationally the standard is non-profits. Most sports have both their international organisations and highest standard of play organisations as non-profits - football, tennis, golf, cricket. The international components of baseball, american football, and basketball are all non-profits (though they are lower standards of play than the US internal leagues).

paxys 2mo ago

American sports leagues are also non-profit organizations. Profits go to the individual teams. So no, FIFA should not be run by private equity firms.

arbitrary_name 2mo ago

imo, usa has the worst sports culture of any country I've lived in (6 so far). Oakland Raiders? not anymore! teams just leave to another city if the money is right. craziness. the sheer number of ads and marketing. what are you smoking?