Potential of professional lacrosse

[MMC]

What do you think is the potential of professional lacrosse as a popular sport in the US and Canada? The National Lacrosse League is currently a distant 3rd in terms of average attendance for indoor sports leagues in the US and Canada, following the NBA and NHL, and the Premier Lacrosse League, which is outdoor, averages around 10-15K, though it is a traveling team rather than playing in home arenas/cities. The sport does seem to be growing though, and unlike soccer in the US and Canada, it would not be competing with more competitive and more popular lacrosse leagues in other countries. Do you think it could ever near the popularity of the NHL and NBA? Which type of lacrosse (box or field) do you think will become more popular, or can both become big sports? How popular do you think it can get at its peak, or do you believe it is already there?

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[CHRDANHUTCH]

What do you think is the potential of professional lacrosse as a popular sport in the US and Canada? The National Lacrosse League is currently a distant 3rd in terms of average attendance for indoor sports leagues in the US and Canada, following the NBA and NHL, and the Premier Lacrosse League, which is outdoor, averages around 10-15K, though it is a traveling team rather than playing in home arenas/cities. The sport does seem to be growing though, and unlike soccer in the US and Canada, it would not be competing with more competitive and more popular lacrosse leagues in other countries. Do you think it could ever near the popularity of the NHL and NBA? Which type of lacrosse (box or field) do you think will become more popular, or can both become big sports? How popular do you think it can get at its peak, or do you believe it is already there?

NLL no longer exists.... the dominate league has become the PLL

 

[Mightygoose]

NLL no longer exists.... the dominate league has become the PLL

The NLL still exists.

They just haven't played a game since the pandemic. The business model is too gate dependent to play right now.

As to where it could fit in the North American landscape. I think it's growth in major markets is dependent on NHL and NBA owners (who own or operate the arena) to add them in their folds. That will get them big enough for any serious chance at a bigger media and sponsorships.

 

[CHRDANHUTCH]

The NLL still exists.

They just haven't played a game since the pandemic. The business model is too gate dependent to play right now.

the Cannons left the NLL for the PLL

 

[Mightygoose]

the Cannons left the NLL for the PLL

Isn't the PLL an outdoor lacrosse league? Perhaps it's the MLL that no longer exists. NLL is the indoor game.

 

[Rigafan]

Isn't the PLL an outdoor lacrosse league? Perhaps it's the MLL that no longer exists. NLL is the indoor game.

Correct the MLL kinda of merged into the PLL which is the main outdoor game now.

NLL is very much alive with a new team announced and the New England team being sold and moved to Albany NY.

I don't know too much but I try to follow the NLL (Indoor, box lacrosse one) abit. Outdoor lacrosse seems to have the 'ivy league rich kid' stigma to it still? Where as indoor is abit more exciting and more ice hockey like so easy to understand for an outsider I suppose.

 

[MMC]

the Cannons left the NLL for the PLL

This is wrong, they left the MLL, not the NLL

 

[Didalee Hed]

NLL no longer exists.... the dominate league has become the PLL

Dominate isn’t an adjective.

 

[CHRDANHUTCH]

This is wrong, they left the MLL, not the NLL

then I question why does Lacrosse deserve a topic on the business forum, MMC, this is as speculative as inserting City X into a major league market, the MLL/NLL/PLL aren't even a discussion point on team forums, even if posters recognize the team exists and/or the mods allow them to be discussed as the Cannons don't move the needle in New England, even if you recognize they exist

 

[Rigafan]

What do you think is the potential of professional lacrosse as a popular sport in the US and Canada? The National Lacrosse League is currently a distant 3rd in terms of average attendance for indoor sports leagues in the US and Canada, following the NBA and NHL, and the Premier Lacrosse League, which is outdoor, averages around 10-15K, though it is a traveling team rather than playing in home arenas/cities. The sport does seem to be growing though, and unlike soccer in the US and Canada, it would not be competing with more competitive and more popular lacrosse leagues in other countries. Do you think it could ever near the popularity of the NHL and NBA? Which type of lacrosse (box or field) do you think will become more popular, or can both become big sports? How popular do you think it can get at its peak, or do you believe it is already there?

The NLL 2019 Attendance figures...

TEAM - TOTAL - GAMES - AVERAGE

Saskatchewan		121,131	9	13,459
Buffalo		117,415	9	13,046
Colorado		115,342	9	12,815
Calgary		113,345	9	12,593
Philadelphia		98,147	9	10,905
Toronto		85,289	9	9,476
San Diego		69,921	9	7,769
Vancouver		61,501	9	6,833
Georgia		60,287	9	6,698
Rochester		57,964	9	6,440
New England		49,741	9	5,526
TOTALS:		950,083	99	9,596

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

As you can see the league doesn't draw to badly but I think exposure is a huge issue, just how many people, even inside some of those cities will know that theNLL exists? The NHL still gets critisied for not having 'star power' like the NBA/NFL and they are a HUGE billion dollar operation!

I think lacrosse could carve out its own little thing but they will have to be careful and comfortable with being rather low key for the time being.

 

[nickp91]

Paul Rabil and his team have done with the PLL with marketing themselves and bringing the game to new heights

 

[PCSPounder]

The NLL 2019 Attendance figures...

TEAM - TOTAL - GAMES - AVERAGE

Saskatchewan		121,131	9	13,459
Buffalo		117,415	9	13,046
Colorado		115,342	9	12,815
Calgary		113,345	9	12,593
Philadelphia		98,147	9	10,905
Toronto		85,289	9	9,476
San Diego		69,921	9	7,769
Vancouver		61,501	9	6,833
Georgia		60,287	9	6,698
Rochester		57,964	9	6,440
New England		49,741	9	5,526
TOTALS:		950,083	99	9,596

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

As you can see the league doesn't draw to badly but I think exposure is a huge issue, just how many people, even inside some of those cities will know that theNLL exists? The NHL still gets critisied for not having 'star power' like the NBA/NFL and they are a HUGE billion dollar operation!

I think lacrosse could carve out its own little thing but they will have to be careful and comfortable with being rather low key for the time being.

There was a time when Denver and Toronto were the big draws. So there are cycles with the sport indoors, Georgia and New England are moving, and you’re essentially playing darts with new markets.

The thing, though... I know that, in Portland, you can find a lot of kids playing the sport at the trendy schools. Not the Portlandia trendy schools, but the west side schools and suburbs where a fair amount of the money is. If that’s holding across other cities, then there’s a base by which you can build something, find sponsors, etc.

The problem is that this base is geared towards getting their kids into better schools. Supporting the pro sport? That’s tougher. Portland had the Lumberjax for four years, but the owner of the team was a renter at Moda Center and overpriced the tickets among the usual mistakes.

Overall, potential is there, more so than 20 years ago. But... conundrum wrapped in riddle to figure it out.