Managerial accounting helps one understand what it takes to be successful in any business. A case in point are the ever popular sports franchises, of all kinds. Now what little I understand about sports is this.
Fans come to see players and teams win, not to lose. One has to attract winning talent. It seems to me that the team that attracts the most winning talent at the least cost has the lowest fixed cost to overcome. Hence their prices can be lower to attract the same number of fans. Remember break even equals fixed cost divided by contribution margin.
Our first case in point is the Detroit Tigers. This is a particularly interesting story in that Mike Illitch turned around the Red Wing hockey team and has made big bucks with Little Caesars Pizza. His front office at the Tigers baseball team however just did not pick winners. So he got a new front office team and started hiring players. The Detroit record was so bad that only injured big names started showing interest. So that is who he hired. Read the article to learn how it turned out.
Meanwhile the Ladies Porf Golf Assoc needed a make over. This article is particularly interesting as to its insight on how one make’s money with a golf tour, especially through television. The Commissioner is fighting to regain control of all their tournaments. And this is clearly a tough business, no wallflowers need apply-read about tough negotiator Carolyn Bivens.
Paul Samuelson in his legendary economics textbook observes that most sole proprietorships live and die with their owner. Hmmm, this is apparently the case with the Earnhardt NASCAR team. Father Dale was killed in a NASCAR crash a few years back. Now son Dale Jr. has inherited trophy wife and mother in law Teresa. Click on the hyper link to the article to see the photos of Dale Jr. and, well, shall we say, Mom. Dale Jr has now won a race in three years and is apparently bolting for another team. Gee you would never know there was a problem to read about her on the Earnhardt website.. More on the
Family Fued here.
Professor Elam 
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