The NFL has experienced dramatic growth in revenue and popularity over the past two decades making it the most popular sport in America.

• Team values have increased exponentially over the past decade.
• From 1998 to 2009, the average NFL team increased in value 360% from $289.1 million to $1.042 billion.
• The Dallas Cowboys are the most valuable professional sports team in the country, worth more than $1.65 billion, while the New England Patriots have increased in value from $172 million in 1994 to $1.4 billion—a 714% increase over 15 years.
• The NFL’s least valuable team, the Oakland Raiders ($797 million), is more valuable than the NBA’s most valuable teams, the New York Knicks ($613 million) and the Los Angeles Lakers ($584 million).
• 59% (19) of the 32 NFL teams are worth more than $1 billion, compared to 0% in the NBA, 0% in the NHL, and 3.3% in MLB.
• The average NFL team is valued at $1.042 billion compared to the average MLB team at $491.9 million, the average NBA team at $379 million, and the average NHL team at $219 million.

• In 2008, operating income rose 31%, to an average of $32 million per team, while labor costs rose only 4%.

• Total league operating income has increased exponentially over the past decade.
• From 1998 to 2008, total league operating income has increased over 339% from approximately $180 million to $790 million.
• In 2008, operating income rose 31%, to an average of $32 million per team, while labor costs rose only 4%.
• Over the past five years, average operating income per team is $26.4 million.
• NFL owners have experienced a 17.6% annual return on investment through capital appreciation and operating income or $100 million per year per team.
• Players in 2007-8 received the same or less percentage of total league revenue as they had historically received since 1994, the first year of free agency/salary cap.

• Television revenue in the NFL continues to grow at unprecedented rates.
• Since 1982, the NFL has seen a 767% increase in television revenue, from $420 million to $3.6 billion in 2008.
• The current TV deals generate 48% of total league revenue, or $114 million annually per franchise through 2011, compared to the $15 million generated per team in 1982.
• The $3.6 billion generated from television revenue is more than the total television money spent annually on the MLB, NBA, NHL, and NASCAR, combined.