The Effect of Competition in the Sports Market on the Popularity of Baseball

This is my senior research project submitted to fulfill my graduation requirements for the University of Lynchburg’s honors program. Below is the abstract for the paper. If you would like to read the full thesis, which is around 47 pages, reach out to me and I will gladly email a copy.

Abstract

This paper will discuss why Major League Baseball (MLB) has declined in popularity in the United States since 1998. Issues regarding the increased competition with the development of different sports leagues along with antitrust in payroll drew the most interest. Various forms of marketing, including media and competitive marketing, will be covered along with different variations of economics in the sports world. The research will follow the development of Major League Baseball through the second half of the 20th century, along with an analysis between the MLB, National Basketball Association (NBA) and National Football League (NFL) in the 21st century in regard to payroll and media marketing. Studies done on this topic include competitive balance and attendance in the MLB discussing a variety of factors within the sport itself, such as team market size and the compression of baseball talent. The goal is to prove that there is a correlation between the increased competition in the sports market and the decrease in popularity in the MLB.