The Demand for NFL Football

Abstract

This chapter considers the demand for NFL football. Football demand is unusual as compared with many goods and services. Rather than market clearing at competitive price levels or limited demand induced by monopoly pricing, the equilibrium position for many football teams is one of excess demand. Football attendance is characterized by excess demand and generally tight market. A theory of Becker (1991) helps explain the demand for football. Becker’s theory is that demand in some situations depends on social interaction and the size of the crowd. DeSerpa (1994) has adapted this theory for NFL football and other situations where the crowd composition is as important as the crowd size. Using data from 1995 through 1999 for all NFL teams during their regular season, I construct an econometric model of the demand for NFL football. I use this model to test the Becker/DeSerpa theory and conclude that the demand curve slopes upward in the relevant range as anticipated by the theoretical model. The next section of this chapter discuss NFL football demand. In Section 2.3, I discuss bandwagons, social influences, and group demand behavior. In Section 2.4, I discuss the Becker model and DeSerpa’ extensions. Section 2.5 presents the econometric model while Section 2.6 provides conclusions.