Cheap Losses > Expensive Wins

[ethat001]

Actually, there are two ways to do this:

1) Lose cheaply - get $20-30 million per their calculations.
2) Spend lavishly, but rearrange contracts/deals to generate a lot more revenue.

Snyder has always chosen (2), which is more fun (painful) to watch. I think Dan Snyder has been business-smart because he's found ways to make money while paying these expensive contracts. He's spent lavishly & excited the fans each year -> and the fans buy into the hype each year (McNabb and Haynesworth jerseys, tickets, etc). Thank goodness it seems like things have changed (?) and Shanny's running the show and a real team.

The Passion of Redskins Owner Daniel Snyder - Forbes.com

"He started with the stadium, selling the naming rights to FedEx in 1999 for $205 million over 27 years. At nearly $8 million a year, it remains one of the highest annual payouts in sports. Snyder added 10,000 seats, most at premium prices. He wedged an extra 1,500 high-end seats into the front row and the end zones, the first owner to see value in those areas. He added 44 luxury suites which have little touches like flat-screen TVs over the urinals. He fixed the parking and egress. In all he's poured $160 million into the stadium, which cost $250 million to build originally.

It has paid off. Sponsorship revenues are up during his tenure from $2 million to $50 million. Concession and merchandise revenues have tripled to $12 million. Snyder reaps an estimated $10 million in profits from non-game-day events in the stadium (among the league leaders), which hosts concerts (the Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen) and college football games. The Redskins' revenues ($353 million) and operating income ($104 million) are second in the league behind the Cowboys, who just moved into a brand-new stadium."