[OLD HEAD]

NFL 2009

July 2009

Part II And III

II. Popularity/Surveys

SURVEY SAYS:
THE HARRIS POLL: NFL CONTINUES 44-YEAR RUN AS MOST POPULAR SPORT

Tops Next 3 Pro Sports Combined

For more than four decades, according to The Harris Poll, the NFL has been the most popular sport in America. This year, professional football is the favorite sport of more people (31 percent) than the combined total of the next three professional sports – baseball (16 percent), auto racing (eight percent) and men's pro basketball (six percent).

In addition, pro football has gained in popularity more than any other sport since 1985…with a seven percent increase in popularity over those two decades (from 24 percent to 31 percent). Those are among the findings of the latest annual Harris Poll on American attitudes toward sports. Pro football moved ahead of baseball as the fans' favorite for the first time in 1965.

Following are the five most popular sports according The Harris Poll:

Sport
Percent of Fans Citing as Favorite

Pro Football 31%
Baseball 16%
College Football 12%
Auto Racing 8%
Men's Pro Basketball 6%

Source: The Harris Poll, January 2009





III. Attendance/Blackout Lifts

ATTENDANCE

NFL Records Third Highest Attendance in 2008

Total Paid Attendance (Regular Season + Postseason)

2008 17,862,814 (3rd highest behind 2007 & 2006)
2007 18,137,224 **NFL Record
2006 18,116,430
2005 17,814,708
2004 17,789,776
2003 17,719,130
2002 17,615,254
2001 16,933,163
2000 17,196,421
1999 17,000,399
1998 16,187,758
1997 15,769,193
**The 17,056,941 tickets sold to the NFL's 256 regular-season games in 2008 represented paid attendance at more than 90 percent of capacity.



Average Attendance in 2008 Ranks Third All-Time… Paid attendance for 2008 NFL regular-season games of 66,629 is the third-highest of all time behind the 67,755 per game last year and the 67,738 average in 2006.


BLACKOUT LIFTS

SEASON %
NUMBER LIFTED, NUMBER OF GAMES

2008 96% 247-256
2007 96% 246-256
2006 97% 249-256 **RECORD** (entire week sold out 13 of 17 times)
2005 95% 244-256 (includes lifts for all Saints games)
2004 88% 226-256
2003 90% 230-256
2002 90% 230-256
2001 84% 209-248
2000 86% 213-248
1999 84% 209-248
1998 75% 181-240
1997 66% 158-240
1996 68% 162-240
1995 67% 161-240
1994 65% 145-224
1993 67% 140-210
1992 68% 152-224
1991 67% 150-224
1990 61% 136-224
1989 62% 138-224
1988 60% 135-224
1987 STRIKE YEAR
1986 58% 131-224
1985 56% 126-224
1984 53% 118-224
1983 54% 121-224
1982 STRIKE YEAR
1981 71% 160-224
1980 65% 146-224
1979 60% 135-224
1978 50% 110-224
1977 44% 86-196
1976 44% 86-196
1975 41% 75-182
1974 47% 86-182
1973 60% 109-182