Frank P. Jozsa. Football fortunes: the business, organization and strategy of the NFL

McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. 2010 - 253 p.Since completing a doctoral degree in 1977 at Georgia State University and while authoring eight books on the business and economics of professional team sports between the late 1990s and 2009, I continued to research topics about successful organizations such as the National Football League (NFL). Numerous readings have discussed different aspects of professional football and especially the problems of the NFL. Many of these publications, however, simply (if interestingly) describe the history of the league and thus provide data and other information about its regular seasons and postseasons, and the performances of teams, coaches and players. In other words, they focus on and report various NFL events, statistics, and years of play.
In contrast to — but respectful of — those volumes, the present work evaluates other factors to analyze the business, organization, and strategy of the NFL. There are no prior publications, for example, that focus upon the matters of league expansions and mergers, team territories and relocations, franchise organizations and operations, football stadiums and markets, and NFL domestic and foreign affairs. Indeed, according to my research of the sports literature, each of these has a major relationship to the development of the league in America and thus of professional football.
To examine the growth of the NFL and provide some reasons for its popularity between 1920 and the early 2000s, I constructed a number of tables that reflected something interesting with respect to each chapter’s theme. These tables, for example, include such information as the names of new franchises in the league and those teams that had folded, or relocated and survived, and the administrative offices within NFL clubs and the titles of officials and their jobs. Other tables address professional football stadiums in metropolitan areas, existing and potential markets of current or expansion NFL teams, and the responsibilities of league and team vice presidents, managers, directors, and other executives.
Based on the variety of topics within, readers will learn how and whythe NFL has thrived as a professional league in the United States. That is,
they will understand the business importance of leadership and management, organizational structure, and company strategy. Furthermore, this book provides a 14-part statistical appendix, detailed notes, an extensive bibliography, and an index.
In sum, this book is unique because it analyzes the business that is the NFL.Foreword by John Maxymuk1. League Expansions and Mergers
2. Team Territories and Relocations
3. Franchise Organizations and Operations
4. Football Stadiums and Markets
5. NFL Domestic and Foreign Affairs
Appendices (NFL Statistics)
A. APFA-NFL Teams and Seasons, 1920–2008
B. Number of Seasons Played, 1922–2008
C. NFL Performances of Former AFL Franchises, 1970–20082
D. Paid Attendance, Selected Years
E. Team Home-Site Statistics, Selected Years
F. Ownership Characteristics, 2008
G. Coaching Staff Statistics, 2008
H. Average Ticket Price, Selected Years
I. Team Valuations, Selected Years
J. Stadium Rankings, by Category, 2008
K. Stadium Projects Characteristics, Selected Years
L. New, Proposed, or Renovated Stadiums, 2009
M. American Bowl Wins/Losses, by Team, 1986–2003, 2005
N. Pro Bowl Games and Results, 1971–2009