By the time the 1990s end, at least 45 stadiums and arenas will have been built during the decade, and $4 out of every $5 spent on stadiums comes from public sources. In fact, of the 49 existing major-league football and baseball stadiums, 44 were built with public money. There are, however, a few notable exceptions to the public-finance trend (see Table 1).

The new stadium for the San Francisco Giants, scheduled to open in 2000, will be the first major-league baseball park to be completely financed by the private sector since Dodger Stadium was built in 1962. Chase Securities will provide $140 million of the construction cost of Pacific Bell Park, named after the telephone company that has paid $50 million to have its name on the park for 24 years. The rest of the $225 million cost will be financed by naming, sponsorship, and concession rights; charter-seat sales; and $10-$15 million in revenues from future Giants games.

Similarly, in Denver, the NBA’s Nuggets and the NHL’s Avalanche are building a private arena, the Pepsi Center. Ascent Entertainment plans to spend $150 million to build the arena, which will have 19,092 seats, 84 luxury boxes, and a 300-seat cafe. Ascent expects to match its initial investment with first-year revenues, including $90 million in ticket sales from 80 hockey and basketball games and 70 other events, such as rodeos and concerts; $17 million from luxury boxes and club seating; $20 million from naming rights from Pepsi; and $20 million from parking, concessions, and advertising.