Inside INdiana Business is reporting that it is news tourism officials from Bloomington and Lafayette/West Lafayette were expecting to hear in recent days but hoping not to receive: The Big Ten Conference saying it is postponing the 2020-21 fall sports schedules, including football.
The Big Ten Council of Presidents/Chancellors said the decision was based on multiple factors but was necessary due to ongoing health and safety concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Our primary responsibility is to make the best possible decisions in the interest of our students, faculty and staff,” said Morton Schapiro, chair of the Big Ten Council of Presidents/Chancellors and Northwestern University president.
The loss of football is especially impactful, as both communities count on the millions of dollars that pour into the local economy during the Indiana University and Purdue University football seasons.
“There are anywhere from 6-7 weekends in a normal year and we can count on those revenues and that stuff from those games happening, so it’s a big loss for us,” Mike McAfee, executive director of Visit Bloomington, tells Inside INdiana Business.
McAfee said home football games are the busiest tourism weekends for Bloomington, as they draw approximately 40,000 additional people to hotels, restaurants, and bars. According to Visit Bloomington data, visitors spend about $158 per person on a game weekend.
It is a similar story for Purdue. Officials with Visit Lafayette-West Lafayette say home football games generate $2 to $3 million in the community per game and $20 million for the season.
“Certainly, football is the biggest sporting event by a long shot,” said Jo Wade, president and chief executive officer of Visit Lafayette-West Lafayette. “It’s especially sad for the hospitality industry that’s already suffering really badly from the pandemic.”
As two of the smaller cities in the conference, the loss of the economic driver cuts deeper than in communities with larger population bases, such as Madison, Wisconsin and Columbus, Ohio,
“We are one of the smallest Big Ten university towns, so when something like this happens, the impact is much bigger on us,” said McAfee.
The decision by conference leaders also impacts the postseason, meaning no 2020 Big Ten Football Championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium. Indianapolis has hosted the game since 2011.
The Indiana Sports Corporation told Inside INdiana Business in December that the Ohio State’s 34-21 win over Wisconsin last season resulted in a $19.5 million economic impact. The 66,649 fans in attendance were the second-highest crowd in the history of college football championship games, according to the Big Ten.
The ISC estimated the first nine years of the Big Ten Championship have had a total economic impact of about $200 million to Indianapolis.
Meanwhile, the conference said it will continue to evaluate a number of options regarding these sports, including the possibility of competition in the spring.
“We want to support anything the university wants to do, but spring is a busy time,” said McAfee. “When we get past Valentine’s Day, every weekend is booked with activities.”
In addition to football, the postponement impacts men’s and women’s cross country, field hockey, men’s and women’s soccer, and women’s volleyball. But football is the biggest driver to the economy in the fall.
“But we are not just football. We are not just Purdue. We have a lot of other things in our community,” said Wade.
That sentiment is echoed by McAfee.
“We’re more than just a university town, we do have a lot of things to offer. We’ll be resilient about it, there just won’t be quite as much revenue coming into the community as normal.”
Conference officials say decisions regarding winter and spring sports will also continue to be evaluated.
Click here to view the Big Ten announcement.