TURNKEY Sports Poll February 2009 - Women's Sports, Social Media, Major League Soccer and the Economy

TURNKEY Sports Poll

Turnkey Sports & Entertainment owns the Turnkey Sports Poll, the industry’s continuing survey of senior-level executives and owners which probes the hottest issues inside sports. The results of the poll appear weekly in the SportsBusiness Journal.

February 2010
Fantasy sports, ticket sales, and the upcoming MLS and MLB seasons

Was holding the Pro Bowl before the Super Bowl successful in generating more fan and media interest for the event?

Yes - 60%

No - 31%

Not sure / No response - 9%

Which of the following Super Bowl commercials did you like best?

Snickers – “Betty White, Abe Vigoda” - 33%

Google – “Lovebirds go to Paris” - 13%

Doritos – “Dog Shock Collar” - 12%

Hyundai – “Brett Fabre 2010 MVP” - 7%

Bud Light – “House Made of Beer Cans” - 6%

Audi A3 TDI – “Green Police” - 5%

Volkswagen – “Punch Dub / Punch Buggy” - 4%

Budweiser – “Fence Can’t Keep Friends Apart” - 2%

Coca-Cola – “Sleepwalker” - 1%

Bridgestone – “Bachelor Party” - 1%

Not sure / No response - 16%

Which of the following brands did the best job overall with its commercials?

Doritos - 28%

Budweiser/Bud Light - 17%

Google - 15%

eTrade - 8%

Audi - 4%

Flo TV - 3%

Volkswagen - 2%

Go Daddy - 2%

Bridgestone - 1%

Hyundai - 1%

Not sure / No response - 19%

The LA Sol of Women’s Professional Soccer (WPS) recently folded. Is this indicative of the fate of the league?

Yes, eventually the league will shut down - 67%

Yes, the league will fold by the end of 2010 - 13%

No, it is just a bump on the road - 8%

Not sure / No response - 11%

Which three of the following metrics best help determine fan avidity? (Select up to three)

Number of games watched on television - 74%

Number of games attended in person - 55%

Dollar amount spent on merchandise - 31%

Time spent talking about sport - 30%

Time spent reading about sport - 22%

Membership to fan clubs/forums - 14%

Participation in fantasy leagues of the sport - 10%

Other - 4%

(Time spent online)

(Net Promoter Score)

(Dollar amount spent in total)

Not sure / No response - 4%

Which site offers the best fantasy football platform?

Yahoo.com - 21%

ESPN.com - 15%

Sportsline.com - 11%

NFL.com - 7%

FantasySportsLive.com - 1%

Not sure / No response - 45%

Which of the following leagues faces the biggest ticket sales challenge in 2010?

NASCAR - 25%

MLS - 20%

MLB - 18%

NBA - 16%

NHL - 14%

NFL - 5%

Not sure / No response - 2%

Have you ever had a job in ticket sales during your sports business career?

Yes - 37%

No - 63%

Which of the following positions is most critical to the success of a property’s ticket sales department?

Ticket sales executive - 44%

Database manager / CRM manager / Analyst - 23%

Ticket sales rep - 16%

Box office manager - 6%

Ticket sales trainer / consultant - 3%

Not sure / No response - 8%

Going into the 2010 season, how would you describe the current status of MLS?

Stagnant, but holding its position - 50%

Growing in popularity - 35%

Diminishing in popularity - 10%

Not sure / No response - 5%

Since 2007 MLS has expanded into four new markets – Toronto (2007), San Jose (2008), Seattle (2009) and Philadelphia (2010) – while Vancouver and Portland will each have an MLS franchise in 2011. Is MLS...?

…expanding at the right pace - 48%

…expanding too quickly - 38%

…not expanding fast enough - 1%

Not sure / no response - 13%

In 2010 will MLS exceed last year’s levels of …?

	Yes	No	Not sure / No response
…ticket sales	49%	39%	12%
…sponsorship sales	32%	53%	15%

As the new owner of the Chicago Cubs’, the Ricketts family should first focus on…?

…improving the team’s on-field performance - 56%
…developing new revenue streams - 19%
…renovating Wrigley Field - 16%
…other - 2%
- (Building trust with fans)

Not sure / No response - 7%

In 2010, will MLB exceed last year’s levels of…?

	Yes	No	Not sure / No response
…ticket sales	49%	50%	1%
…sponsorship sales	39%	59%	2%

Thinking about your own particular business, what best describes your confidence level regarding the next 12 months for your own business?

7 - Extremely optimistic - 8%

6 - Very optimistic - 24%

5 - Somewhat optimistic - 51%

4 - Neither optimistic nor pessimistic - 8%

3 - Somewhat pessimistic - 8%

2 - Very pessimistic - 1%

1 - Extremely pessimistic - 0%

No Response / Not Sure - 0%

	Feb. 2010	Jan. 2010	Dec. 2009	Feb. 2009
Optimistic (5, 6, or 7)	83%	80%	84%	59%
Neutral (4)	8%	10%	8%	10%
Pessimistic (1, 2, or 3)	9%	10%	8%	31%
No response/Not sure	0%	0%	0%	0%