Packers ride Super Bowl defense to record profits

[July 11, 2012]  MILWAUKEE (AP) -- The Green Bay Packers announced Tuesday that they had a record year financially, driven in large part by their 13-0 start to a season in which they were the defending Super Bowl champion.

The Packers said they had $42.7 million in net income in 2011-12, an increase of 150 percent over the previous year. Total revenue was $302 million, up 6.9 percent, largely driven by enthusiasm over a season that included a 15-1 regular-season record, team president Mark Murphy said.

"It was such a great season," Murphy said. "It kept the excitement level at a very high level."

As the NFL's only publicly owned franchise, the Packers are the only NFL team required to reveal detailed financial data. The latest report didn't include $64 million raised through a six-week stock sale around the Christmas season.

The stock sale was the fifth in the team's history and first since 1997. Murphy said it added some 250,000 shareholders, which he predicted would help the team down the road in terms of being revenue generators.

The team's income was helped by a 4 percent drop in expenses to $259 million. A year earlier, the team played all four of its playoff games, including the Super Bowl, on the road.

The Packers lone playoff game last season was at home, a loss to the New York Giants.

Green Bay had national revenue of $171.6 million. That includes revenue sources divided among all teams, such as broadcast deals and road receipts. The team also reported local revenue of $130.4 million, which includes revenue from home gates, local media deals, Pro Shop sales and tours of Lambeau Field.

So-called local revenue was up 9.3 percent in part because of a record number of tourists, Murphy said. There were 156,000 visitors to the stadium, and 137,000 people took the tour.

While the team's performance contributed to the strong financial results, Murphy said the team benefited from the fact that labor issues were resolved just before last season's training camps began - meaning fans didn't miss anything.

The Packers are reinvesting profits into the stadium and other efforts, Murphy said. He mentioned the ongoing $143 million expansion to Lambeau Field that includes a new sound system, two high-definition video boards, new entrances and about 7,000 news seats in time for the 2013 season.

He said the team is also working to engage fans through its website and social media.

"You're not going have years like this every year, but we just want to be a consistent organization that performs well on and off the field," he said. "... We couldn't have been more pleased with the way fans supported us."

[Associated Press; By DINESH RAMDE]

Dinesh Ramde can be reached at [e-mail].

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