The Future of the NBA: International Expansion

Last week, I chose to examine a disturbing and recurring story that illuminated the exploitation of young and talented African soccer players. In doing so, I discovered that while the situation has been dismal and unsolvable for years, some prominent players and organizations were finally beginning to take positive steps in the right direction. This week, however, I found it impossible to ignore the current economic crisis, specifically that the House had rejected the Bush administration's bailout plan. As a result, I decided to attempt to relate the situation to the sports world, and was able to do so through recent news regarding the NBA's international expansion. With such an economic downturn, it seems clear that the NBA must renew its efforts to increase international marketing, with the goal of eventual expansion. As the crisis begins to seep down to the people, spending on luxury items such as basketball tickets is sure to fall, leading the NBA to look elsewhere for revenue, such as television markets. Following the vast successes of the Beijing Olympics, moreover, interest in the NBA is rapidly increasing (pictured left), especially in China, where the NBA is already immensely popular. It follows, then, that the 2012 Olympics in London should provide another spectacular venue and hopefully demonstrate the virtues of the NBA to British citizens, creating a fresh, new market for television and merchandise sales. In considering this pertinent topic, I encountered and commented on two different blogs. The first post that I responded to, "Basketball Goes All Out to Score in the UK," was written by Shakthi Kumar from Chennai, India, who creates multiple entries daily in his blog, "Basketball Updates, History, and Recaps." In his entry, he examines the attempts of the NBA to win over England as new market source of revenue. The second post that I responded to, "U.S. is Likely to Win Gold, but the NBA is the Big Winner," by Bob Kravitz, a well-renowned sports columnist for the Indianapolis Star since 2000, focused instead on the developments of NBA marketing in China, a nation where NBA support is expected to continue to grow. In addition to publishing my comments directly on the authors' respective blogs, I have also posted these comments below.

"Basketball Goes All Out to Score in the UK"

Comment:

I would like to thank you for a thoughtful and provocative post regarding the changing dynamics of the NBA, specifically regarding its attempts to increase its popularity in new markets. You have clearly researched the subject, providing pertinent examples of the way in which Commissioner Stern (below, right) and the NBA are trying to implement their product overseas. I was impressed with the way in which you approached the subject, by first contrasting the international expansion of the English Premier League with the international expansion of the NBA. I find it interesting that of the NBA's annual $600 million revenue overseas, the UK provides such a small proportion. I understand that most/all of the sports attention is focused on the Premier League, but I am surprised that basketball "has failed to capture the public's imagination," when it seems to be quickly increasing in popularity in other parts of Europe, including places where soccer is prominent as well. I wonder if you have any further thoughts on the subject? In any case, I certainly agree with you, then, that the upcoming 2012 Olympic Games in London will be the greatest opportunity for Commissioner Stern to attract a following for the sport. It undoubtedly seemed to be effective during the Beijing Games, although China has certainly had an NBA following for quite some time, including a marketable star of their own in Yao Ming. I was actually surprised to learn that there had been prior attempts to implement basketball into Britain's consciousness, although I suppose such attempts were not well publicized because of their failures. What really piqued my interest in this post, however, was the latter portion, in which you cite Stern's concerns regarding the current economic crisis, which, as I'm sure you know, has taken a turn for the worse today, with the House's rejection of the bailout plan. Clearly, sports are not the primary area of concern with regards to the crisis, but it is interesting to consider that if/when ticket sales are adversely affected; expanding television markets will become more of a necessity than a desire. Obviously, Britain would provide a very large market, both for television and for merchandise sales, depending on whether or not the upcoming Heat-Nets game has some success in stirring interest. I wonder, however, if you have considered that while the economic crisis will force Stern to expand markets, it will likely also have a negative effect in the British economy, consequently making it difficult for basketball, a new form of "luxury spending," to gain any traction.

"U.S. is Likely to Win Gold, but the NBA is the Big Winner"

Comment:

I first want to thank you for your insightful post regarding the future of international basketball. It is clear, as you stated, that the development of the NBA is heading in the direction of foreign markets, none of which are bigger or more prepared for the big stage than the nation that just finished hosting the biggest basketball tournament in the world. While it was important on many levels for the US to come away from these Olympics with a gold medal, I completely agree with you that the more important result was the increased exposure of NBA stars to an emerging market. Most notably, the Chinese market is, as you explain, experiencing unprecedented growth, leading to a situation in which "the Chinese are looking at the NBA product as a way to spend their increasing reserves of disposable income." This important characteristic, combined with the exponentially growing interest in the sport (as you illustrate with NBA.com/China as the most popular sports site in China) and the recent creation of NBA China, demonstrate the inevitability of increased NBA exposure in the market. However, I am somewhat hesitant regarding your prediction that within ten years the NBA will have a franchise in China, as well potential franchises across Europe. Of course, the last decade signified an incredible increase in the foreign talent pool, especially when considering it has been eight years since the US took Olympic Gold. Indeed, international interest in the game is rapidly increasing. Still, the NBA has yet to play a regular season game abroad, much less consider the notion of adding a team. The traveling expenses would not only be substantial, but there would also be many players unhappy with their new arrangements, having to travel tens of hours between games, not to mention having to adapt to foreign cultures. Additionally, it seems that with the recent depreciation of the dollar relative to the Euro, the NBA will have a hard enough time as it is trying to compete with European leagues for players, as we have seen with the recent departures of Josh Childress and Carlos Delfino, among others. Moreover, superstars such as LeBron and Kobe have seriously entertained the idea of leaving for Europe for at least one season, based on rumors of $50 million offers. With the advent of the current economic crisis, it is more important than ever for the NBA to expand its markets abroad, and I agree with you that the Olympics have done so quite effectively. I remain, however, skeptical of the speed with which a worldwide league could be created.

Europe's Quest for Soccer Success: A New Wave of Exploitation

For years, developing nations have relied on the exports of their most precious resources, such as gold, silver, and oil, in order to survive economically. Through this process, they have developed a dependency on the powers of the world, relying on them to infuse capital into their struggling economies in exchange for such resources. Nowhere is this form of post-colonial exploitation more evident than in Africa, where scarce resources abound and poverty is rampant. Today, however, there exists a new commodity to exploit: young, talented soccer players. There are several African soccer leagues, but none can compare to the profitability of European leagues, and as a result, African youths grow up with the dream of playing for the top European clubs, where they imagine they can make inordinate sums of money to send back to their families. This dream, however, provides a niche for profit-seeking businessmen to swoop in, taking kids as young as twelve from their homes with the often false promise of success in Europe. While some players buck the trend and become European stars, the majority of them fail, their profit value plummets, and they are subsequently abandoned, left to drift in a foreign country embarrassed that they failed to fulfill their family's dream.

Of course, the flip side of the argument is that these 'agents' provide the opportunity for kids in a situation in which they have no other options; that is, at least they are given a chance to go make money for their families. Clearly, there are those who eventually succeed with European clubs; however, as the Irish Independent News reports, even the most successful African players have a problem with the current system. Nwankwo Kanu (pictured left), Portsmouth's Nigerian center-forward, has twice been African player of the year, won the European Cup, and won an Olympic gold medal; yet, he still takes issue with "agents who have for years preyed on young African players, ripping them off and leaving many penniless and abandoned."

Regrettably, the exploitation does not end even for those who are fortunate enough to sign contracts with European clubs. Georges Mojado of Cameroon began playing for the Belgian club team RAEC Mons when the minimum wage was 1,075 euros per month. He received 150 euros instead, less than 15% of the 'minimum' wage. Timothee Atouba, also of Cameroon, was paid only 1/3 of his promised salary from Neuchatel Xamax of the Swiss League, and his complaints regarding his income were met with threats to send him back to Cameroon. Moreover, players of African descent are often subjected to racism during matches, an epidemic that may be growing rather than receding.

Still, there are marginal benefits to the continent-wide talent search. In Qatar, for example, the government-funded Aspire Sports Academy (pictured below) has begun providing scholarships and elite training facilities to those (ages 12 and up) who make it through the final round of competition, many of which are young Africans that would not otherwise have such an opportunity. However, the growing concern is that there are few social safety nets; in other words, for those who do not make the final cut, unknown instability is likely to follow. Further, concern has been raised in regards to the overarching goals of this massive recruitment; specifically, some believe that the talent search is solely a means for Qatar to enhance its national teams. This worry is not unfounded, considering that Aspire officials will own the players' rights once they become eligible to play professionally.

Finding a suitable answer to the debate will be difficult. On the one hand, one would be hard-pressed to take issue with the endowment of scholarships to poverty-stricken kids. On the other hand, the use of these players for commercial and national gain is naturally exploitative. On a larger scale, moreover, African countries are losing out on the possibility of economic prosperity. In Europe, soccer clubs make enormous margins of profit, by virtue of both ticket sales and corporate sponsorships, which allows them to offer large contracts. In Africa, however, the lack of capital creates a vicious cycle. Players have no opportunity for economic prosperity within the continent because the clubs do not possess the necessary capital to compete with Europe for star players. As a result, the lack of talent on the clubs piques little interest both nationally and abroad, leading to a lack of both ticket sales and corporate sponsorship.

There appears to be no easy solution. Yet, there is hope. African star Nwankwo Kanu (mentioned above) is setting the standard for fixing the system with his new Kanu Football Foundation. Established in May, the organization hopes to follow in the successful footsteps of his first foundation, the Kanu Heart Foundation, by providing help and advice to young soccer players and their families free of charge. Furthermore, says Kanu, the foundation will aim to set up academies across the continent, including countries such as Ghana, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Uganda, and Somalia, in order to provide a better education and more opportunities locally. While Kanu is realistic about the unlikely prospect of stars staying to play locally in the near future, ("where there is no money, people don't want to stay"), he is optimistic about the potential for change. "I hope the foundation will advise leagues and associations on how to improve," he says. "We do have to find local stars for local leagues so that people can aspire to be them also."

FIFA (French for International Federation of Association Football) has joined in the movement towards change as well, investing heavily in its 'Goal' Project over the last several years, aimed at improving African domestic leagues. Significant change, however, must come from within, and Kanu has taken the first step in that direction. Ending the exploitation may not be easy or quick, but at least there is hope that with hard work, it can happen.