Jan 14, 2021; New York, NY, USA; A general view as the New York Rangers host the New York Islanders in an empty Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Bennett/Pool Photo via USA TODAY Sports
Financial documents show that Madison Square Garden Sports, owners of the NBA’s New York Knicks and the NHL’s New York Rangers, saw an $85 million decline in revenue during the quarter ending March 31.
The main contributors to the revenue shortage were massive declines in ticket, concession and merchandise sales, Sportico reported Wednesday.
MSG Sports showed that it took in $267.6 million in the first three months of 2020, just as the COVID-19 pandemic was arriving. Over the same three months this year, it took in $183 million, of which at least $129.5 million was from suite, ticket, concession and merchandise sales.
Television viewing interest remains as high as ever, though, with MSG Sports noting a gain of $22.8 million in local media rights when compared with the same three months last year.
MSG Sports, which also owns the Westchester Knicks in the G League and hockey’s Hartford Wolf Pack of the AHL, still managed to post a net income of $5.5 million during the quarter thanks to a drop in the NBA luxury tax as well as a halt to revenue sharing during the pandemic.
According to Sportico, in the nine months that ended March 31, MSG Sports’ sales were down $342 million, with an overall net loss of $64 million.
–Field Level Media