The Argument Against Subsidizing Stadiums

In a column for The Baltimore Sun, Reason's Adam Summers writes that DC, and other cities, should not subsidize stadiums: "If there is a market for, say, a professional baseball team, and a savvy entrepreneur recognizes the opportunity, everyone wins: Consumers get a product they have been wanting and the owner makes a lot of money.

If there is not sufficient demand, yet the government subsidizes the investment anyway, there are few winners and many losers: A few consumers who really wanted the team may win, and the owner certainly wins big because he has put less of his money up in the first place. But the majority of taxpayers are big losers (particularly those who would not have paid to attend the games anyway). Rather than benefiting sports team owners at the expense of taxpayers, Washington should stay out of the sports and entertainment business completely. Sound economics show that there would be no real benefit to the city from subsidizing such an endeavor (and that there would likely be significant costs from doing so)."