Photo by Thomson200, CC0, via Wikimedia CommonsBest Sports Business City in America. Half the Teams Agree.
Sports Business Journal named Atlanta the number one sports business city in America, ahead of New York, LA, and Chicago. One of the four teams that plays in the building they're praising is dead last in its league.
Sports Business Journal ranked 2,384 markets. Atlanta won.
Number one sports business city in America. Ahead of New York. Ahead of LA. Ahead of Chicago.
The case is airtight. Mercedes-Benz Stadium hosted a World Cup semifinal three weeks ago. Fan Fest drew 500,000 to Centennial Olympic Park -- the same park built for the '96 Games, still hosting the world thirty years later. The city banked $503 million in economic impact. SBJ measured opportunity, investment viability, industry sentiment.
They didn't measure wins.
The Braves are 67-45 and running the NL East. Good. The Hawks spent the offseason rebuilding around Jalen Johnson with actual vision. Fine. The Falcons have a quarterback room built on prove-it deals and medical files.
And Atlanta United -- the team that plays inside the building SBJ is praising -- is fifteenth in the Eastern Conference. Dead last.
I wrote this on July 12: Atlanta is the best sports building in America. That has never been the same sentence as best sports city. SBJ just handed out the hardware for the building. Nobody graded what's happening on the field inside it.
The business is world-class. The product is a split screen. Half the teams agree with the trophy.
The Tilt
Atlanta won the trophy for best sports infrastructure in the country, and half the teams playing in it can't keep up with the building.
— Dex Ponce
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