Over the next three segments, we will be examining the causes and effects over the past couple of years of the greatest amount of capital ever being spent in sports.

Part I: NBA Player Movement and Tampering

Part II: Football and Financial Fair Play

Part III: How Can Small Markets Cope?

 

If you’ve made it this far, congratulations.  You now know at least a little bit more about cash flow in the sports industry.  Of course, we have looked at very recent and very limited perspectives, but they represent an image that is often repeated across sports and nations.  For this segment, the focus will be on two small market teams from each of the sports discussed, basketball and European football, who have exemplified what it means to be small yet still succeed.

In the NBA, there are a couple of teams who present themselves as successful in a smaller market, however none have earned this position more than the San Antonio Spurs.  To put it into perspective, the Spurs have been in the playoffs for consecutive years since before I was born.  Over this time, they have been five time NBA champions, had multiple Hall of Fame talents, and one of the most dominant stretches in the history of the sport.

San Antonio is a city of about 1.5 million residents.  In reality, it is not a small city.  When compared to the other metropolitan areas in the NBA however, this number pales in comparison.  Even in the same state, the Dallas Mavericks hold an audience of  6.8 million people and this doesn’t factor in the mind boggling numbers of New York City and Los Angeles.  Having a smaller local audience to attend games, support the team, and watch on television means that revenues are typically lower for teams like San Antonio.  How is it possible then that they can attract top talent and be one of the best teams in the association?  Great draft selections and an even greater coach.

In 1987, the Spurs selected David Robinson with the first pick in the NBA Draft.  Showing his basketball prowess, Robinson brought the Spurs from league laughing stock to contender in his first year.  The progression was quick, but just as suddenly it stagnated.  With Hakeem Olajuwon who played for the Huston Rockets also in the Western Conference, San Antonio was not the only team with a big time player. Just over a decade after being drafted, David Robinson would get his chance to be on a competitive team.  1998-99 was the first full season under new head coach Gregg Popovich and with the recent addition from the draft Tim Duncan.  This trio cracked the formula becoming a playoff contender in year one, and NBA champions in year two.  San Antonio could no longer be forgotten.

Over the next two decades, draft acquisitions Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili among others, and smart trade decisions helped to continue the success of the team.  Gregg Popovich crafted brilliant schemes and is now hailed by some as the greatest in the coaching field.  Although today their talent appears to be subsiding in the continually deep Western Conference, there is still a very high possibility that the playoff streak will continue, and the world will keep marveling at this team and city that never stop punching up.

In the Premier League, no other team strikes my mind as being more memorable from a small market than Leicester City and their miraculous run to the title in 2016.  The year before, Leicester had become champions of the second division in order to earn their place in the Premier League.  Although they had shown dominance over inferior competition, no one predicted Leicester being competitive their first year in the league, and most assumed that they would drop down to the second tier once again after the season.  Over the summer, Leicester City acquired some notable talent while not breaking the bank to do so.  Shinji Okazaki, Christian Fuchs, and last but certainly not least N’Golo Kante were added to the team along with a couple of less prominent additions.  Certainly nothing that would worry perennial contenders like Liverpool, Manchester City, and Chelsea right?  Leicester would prove to the world that it does not matter where you come from, it is how you get there.

A city of just over 300,000, but with faithful supporters and belief in the team, the Foxes had noting to lose.  After a promising start, many were still in doubt that this newly promoted side could hang for the entire season with the Premier League powerhouses.  Belief paid off.  With Jamie Vardy leading the way as top goalscorer, Leicester City topped the league by ten points and were crowned champions.  It was one of the most unbelievable and magical moments in sports because the players who had believed in themselves all along finally enjoyed the respect of the world in awe at their accomplishments.

For each of these smaller market teams, the winning formula appears to be a combination of a dedicated fan base along with smart acquisitions of talent in the offseason.  With limited financial flexibility and capacity, neither team could afford to essentially buy in to the upper echelon.  Instead, they each made small steps and changes that were intelligent and precisely what was necessary to improve.  Other teams should take this as encouragement, that with time and determination, it is possible to succeed even in the absence of capital that other teams are offered.  The bank need not be broken.