J.C. Bradbury
@jcbradbury.com
Economist, Georgian, Gadfly
Stadium Subsidies, Film Incentives, Local Economic Development, Sports Economics
Tariffs bad. Vaccines good.
*If I block you, you deserved it.*
jcbradbury.com
Stadium Subsidies, Film Incentives, Local Economic Development, Sports Economics
Tariffs bad. Vaccines good.
*If I block you, you deserved it.*
jcbradbury.com
This story made it into the Plain Dealer's morning newsletter. It seems that today's newsrooms are incapable of understanding basic economics issues, yet feature reporting on them. This creates a media environment that is ripe for abuse, which interested parties freely exploit.
December 12, 2025 at 1:06 PM
This story made it into the Plain Dealer's morning newsletter. It seems that today's newsrooms are incapable of understanding basic economics issues, yet feature reporting on them. This creates a media environment that is ripe for abuse, which interested parties freely exploit.
If you're wondering how this works...
December 11, 2025 at 2:34 PM
If you're wondering how this works...
Nice to see elected representatives pushing back against a commissioned "Fiscal Impact Analysis" as "not supported by credible evidence." It's certainly not. www.wsav.com/news/local-n...
December 11, 2025 at 2:28 PM
Nice to see elected representatives pushing back against a commissioned "Fiscal Impact Analysis" as "not supported by credible evidence." It's certainly not. www.wsav.com/news/local-n...
My article with Frank Stephenson examining the effect of Truist Park and The Battery on hotel stays is now published in Tourism Economics. You'll never guess what we find. journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
December 9, 2025 at 4:49 PM
My article with Frank Stephenson examining the effect of Truist Park and The Battery on hotel stays is now published in Tourism Economics. You'll never guess what we find. journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
🎶When I was driving once I saw this painted on a bridge:
"I don't want the world, I just want your half"🎶
"I don't want the world, I just want your half"🎶
December 9, 2025 at 3:55 PM
🎶When I was driving once I saw this painted on a bridge:
"I don't want the world, I just want your half"🎶
"I don't want the world, I just want your half"🎶
Interesting look at the decline in Las Vegas tourism. Includes a poignant observation about the type of tourist that sports events attract. It's just one observation, but the available evidence suggests that it doesn't seem to be a winning strategy. buff.ly/6xzKArf
December 8, 2025 at 1:32 PM
Interesting look at the decline in Las Vegas tourism. Includes a poignant observation about the type of tourist that sports events attract. It's just one observation, but the available evidence suggests that it doesn't seem to be a winning strategy. buff.ly/6xzKArf
The A's Las Vegas stadium has "moved at a rapid clip"? They didn't break ground until two years after the public funding was approved. I have never seen an approved stadium move slower.
December 8, 2025 at 12:42 AM
The A's Las Vegas stadium has "moved at a rapid clip"? They didn't break ground until two years after the public funding was approved. I have never seen an approved stadium move slower.
He seems to be aware of the land subsidy, and then credulously repeats that it will somehow create 1,500 new permanent jobs (a totally made-up number).
December 8, 2025 at 12:34 AM
He seems to be aware of the land subsidy, and then credulously repeats that it will somehow create 1,500 new permanent jobs (a totally made-up number).
NYFC's stadium is 100% privately financed only if you don't count the in-kind subsidy of public land, which NYC Independent Budget Office estimated to be worth $538 million. www.ibo.nyc.ny.us/iboreports/k...
December 8, 2025 at 12:29 AM
NYFC's stadium is 100% privately financed only if you don't count the in-kind subsidy of public land, which NYC Independent Budget Office estimated to be worth $538 million. www.ibo.nyc.ny.us/iboreports/k...
Chicago is getting a new football stadium? Does Chicago Fire count?
December 8, 2025 at 12:20 AM
Chicago is getting a new football stadium? Does Chicago Fire count?
Dynamic pricing took off almost 20 years ago, as technology allowed it. And it didn't start in new luxury-laden stadiums, but in classic venues like Wrigley Field, where seats are scarce.
December 8, 2025 at 12:12 AM
Dynamic pricing took off almost 20 years ago, as technology allowed it. And it didn't start in new luxury-laden stadiums, but in classic venues like Wrigley Field, where seats are scarce.
Also, I find it odd to mark KC's Truman Sports Complex (1972/73) as the death knell for multipurpose stadiums. Kingdome, Olympic Stadium, Skydome, Metrodome, Joe Robbie Stadium all opened afterwards. The shift to single-sport venues didn't happen for almost another 20 years.
December 8, 2025 at 12:12 AM
Also, I find it odd to mark KC's Truman Sports Complex (1972/73) as the death knell for multipurpose stadiums. Kingdome, Olympic Stadium, Skydome, Metrodome, Joe Robbie Stadium all opened afterwards. The shift to single-sport venues didn't happen for almost another 20 years.
Public contributions to NFL stadiums have been increasing since the 1980s.
December 7, 2025 at 6:55 PM
Public contributions to NFL stadiums have been increasing since the 1980s.
I wish this was true, but it's not. Public outlays to NFL stadiums haven't slowed down at all, and elected representatives don't care what economic studies say (I know from personal experience).
December 7, 2025 at 6:55 PM
I wish this was true, but it's not. Public outlays to NFL stadiums haven't slowed down at all, and elected representatives don't care what economic studies say (I know from personal experience).
The claim that data centers provide jobs and tax revenue is not supported by any evidence that I have seen. There is no need to report it because a motivated party asserts it. We need data centers, but they don't need subsidies, and there are negative externalities. www.ajc.com/business/202...
December 5, 2025 at 2:08 PM
The claim that data centers provide jobs and tax revenue is not supported by any evidence that I have seen. There is no need to report it because a motivated party asserts it. We need data centers, but they don't need subsidies, and there are negative externalities. www.ajc.com/business/202...
I was looking forward to rooting for the Whitecaps in MLS Cup as an underdog story, but if this is going to be the narrative, I'm rooting for Luis Suarez to bite someone before hoisting the trophy with Messi.
December 5, 2025 at 12:23 AM
I was looking forward to rooting for the Whitecaps in MLS Cup as an underdog story, but if this is going to be the narrative, I'm rooting for Luis Suarez to bite someone before hoisting the trophy with Messi.
BULLSHIT! Economists have studied the non-financial benefits of stadiums extensively. Turns out, they're small. You can't just say, don't talk to the people who've studied this for 50 years and determined this is a *terrible* idea. No one is ignoring the social benefits.
December 5, 2025 at 12:23 AM
BULLSHIT! Economists have studied the non-financial benefits of stadiums extensively. Turns out, they're small. You can't just say, don't talk to the people who've studied this for 50 years and determined this is a *terrible* idea. No one is ignoring the social benefits.
Sacramento just had its MLS expansion team pulled for lack of funding. Detroit just funded a new stadium for its USL team. No appetite in for a publicly subsidized stadium in any of these other cities. This is non-credible conjecture.
December 5, 2025 at 12:23 AM
Sacramento just had its MLS expansion team pulled for lack of funding. Detroit just funded a new stadium for its USL team. No appetite in for a publicly subsidized stadium in any of these other cities. This is non-credible conjecture.
This is from 2022, just after he let Freddie Freeman walk, and would not resign Dansby Swanson nor Max Fried. ajc.com/sports/atlan...
December 4, 2025 at 7:49 PM
This is from 2022, just after he let Freddie Freeman walk, and would not resign Dansby Swanson nor Max Fried. ajc.com/sports/atlan...
I'm sorry, but what does it take to stop reporting obviously insincere bullshit as a realistic expectation? McGuirk has been saying the Braves will have a top-five payroll for years. www.ajc.com/sports/2025/...
December 4, 2025 at 7:49 PM
I'm sorry, but what does it take to stop reporting obviously insincere bullshit as a realistic expectation? McGuirk has been saying the Braves will have a top-five payroll for years. www.ajc.com/sports/2025/...
For a long time, I didn't realize how important the abstract was. Why spend all that time writing a paper and then blow off the main thing that will cause people to read it? It's often the only thing that gets read.
December 4, 2025 at 3:09 PM
For a long time, I didn't realize how important the abstract was. Why spend all that time writing a paper and then blow off the main thing that will cause people to read it? It's often the only thing that gets read.
Pretty normal year, sandwiched between a Lydia Loveless phase and a new Taylor Swift album.
December 4, 2025 at 1:49 PM
Pretty normal year, sandwiched between a Lydia Loveless phase and a new Taylor Swift album.