Tennessee Titans' value just went up. How Nashville stadium deal plays into $4.4 billion valuation
The price just went up on the Titans.
Nashville's NFL franchise recently grew more in value — percentage-wise — than any of its professional football peers, according to a new Forbes ranking, placing it in the $4 billion club.
That's $4.4 billion to be exact.
The 26% increase in 2022 came before Metro Council approved a $2.1 billion deal for a new enclosed stadium in , which is expected to be completed in 2027. It's poised to become the largest publicly subsidized stadium in NFL history, so a lot is riding on the hefty investment.
The Titans, who open their 2023 NFL season Sunday at the New Orleans Saints, enjoyed an operating income last season of $85 million and an annual revenue of $516 million, according to Forbes.
The Titans were one of four NFL franchises in 2022 to experience valuation jumps of 20% or more. The others were Las Vegas (+22%), Miami (+24%) and Cleveland (+20%). Still, the Titans' estimated value, according to Forbes, ranks in the bottom third (No. 21) of the league (32 teams).
The average team value this year is estimated at $5.1 billion, up 14% from last year. Forbes says the Dallas Cowboys are at the top of the list with a record-breaking valuation of $9 billion — up 13%.
Forbes creates the ranking based on estimates of team revenues and other data that is not provided by the league or the Titans. The team's valuation is likely based on the new stadium’s progress and Middle Tennessee’s consistently high population growth, said Middle Tennessee State University economics professor Michael Roach.
In August, Metro Sports Authority approved a group of local and national construction managers who will collectively oversee East Bank stadium development.
“Anything that generates interest in the sport and puts more eyeballs on the product is going to increase the value,” Roach said. “Locally, the two top line things are the certainty of the stadium and additional revenue streams that come from having a new stadium and population growth.”
Growth in lucrative NFL TV contracts is shared evenly among the teams, and the league enjoys a growing national audience.
“TV contracts have grown so much in the Netflix era because sports is one of the few remaining appointment-viewing events in entertainment,” Roach said. “It’s an entertainment product that’s increasingly differentiated. People still care about the live broadcast.”
Here in Nashville, the new stadium is financed with $760 million from Metro Nashville, $500 million from the state and at least $840 million from the Titans. The team is responsible for all construction overages, as well as ongoing maintenance, which was Metro's responsibility under the past stadium lease.
Metro Council approved the new NFL home and lease in May to reduce public liability for a deteriorating stadium and invest in downtown's growth on the East Bank.
The former Houston Oilers were rebranded as the Tennessee Titans in 1999 after the franchise moved from Texas in 1997 following a dispute over the team's stadium there.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Forbes: Tennessee Titans value surges to $4.4B among NFL teams
