The NFL’s never-ending money grab could soon extend to a product that can do serious harm to fingers that otherwise grab money.
Ben Fischer of Sports Business Journal reports that the league is evaluating the possibility of allowing teams to do sponsorship deals with fireworks retailers.
One complicating factor comes from the laws of the various states. Currently, 14 teams play in jurisdictions that prohibit broad categories of fireworks; Massachusetts bans consumer fireworks sales entirely.
The belief is that a fireworks deal would have an annual value in the six figures, for each given team that sells one. Which makes sense; fireworks are used for only a limited number of days each year.
The amount of money (relatively speaking) arguably makes the association not worth it. While the NFL does deals with certain products that can cause serious harm (e.g., gambling, alcohol), fireworks can create a very specific and traumatic outcome. Why use NFL names and/or logos to attract anyone to buy fireworks?