Kin
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Dappleganger said:Are the Flames losing money? Probably not. But the also probably don't make as much money as one would expect. According to Forbes, the Flames made $18m for the 2015-2016 season.
Only 18 million in profit? Well, we should definitely take money from public services for them.
Dappleganger said:Few are in the public spotlight like a professional sports team. Teams can have a very positive impact on a local economy and justify a subsidy (at least in relation to other businesses that receive subsidies). Here is an example of what one player, LeBron James, has had on Cleveland's economy: (http://www.cleveland.com/cavs/index.ssf/2015/02/lebron_james_cleveland_economi.html)
A team can have a positive effect on a local economy, putting hundreds of millions of dollars into public financing for a stadium almost universally does not have a positive effect on a local economy:
https://www.brookings.edu/book/sports-jobs-and-taxes/
And sports teams by and large contribute less than any other recipient of public funds would. Sports teams, for instance, don't create much in the way of permanent employment compared to, say, giving money for an automaker to open a factory.