INTRODUCTIONThe sentiment can be heard in any office break room, local tavern, or playground. Total discontent with the rising costs of attending professional sporting events. The disdain ranges from player salaries to the cost of parking and concessions. A local reporter, Channel 5 in Chicago, Illinois – April 2003, reports that it costs between $160 and $200 dollars for a family of four to attend a major league baseball game on opening day. The precursor to this cost was a decade of skyrocketing wages and the tendency to build huge megaplexes financed by public allies to house these professional athletes. The current response to this ostentatious decade is to introduce bills to prevent and/or set limits on publicly funded projects (Shafroth, 1996). The history of stadiums shows that it has always been the norm to build public stadiums, however, with the astronomical cost of these projects, the public is more skeptical (Rosentraub, 1991). Why state and local governments continue to want to fund these stadiums has been much debated. The main debate is about the economic impact. The following two passages illustrate this debate: Stadium subsidies do not increase economic activity in total and are not necessary to keep sports leagues alive. Cities, however, face competition for sports teams; In particular, small market cities may need to offer subsidies in response to remain competitive with larger markets. Cincinnati's Riverfront Stadium had not reached the end of its usefulness. But with other cities offering stadium deals, the Reds and Bengals have secured new stadiums at a total cost... middle of paper... Sound fiscal policy?, 10 Marq. Sports law journal. 425 (2000). Johnston, J. (1995) “Competition Helps States”, USA Today, 25 October 1995. McGraw, D. (1996) “Playing the Stadium Game”, US News and World Report, 3 June 1996. Pierce, N. (1998 ). Worm Blasts Stadium Cheats, Washington Post, January 11, 1998. Sanderson, A. In Defense of New Stadiums, Ballparks and Sports Arenas, 10 Marq. Sports Law Journal., 173 (2000). Shughart, W.F., Tollinosn, R. (1985) Public Choices and Antitrust, Cato Journal, p 905-916. Smith, F. (1993), Why not abolish Antitrust? Journal on Government and Society, 7, 1 (January/February).Sutter, D. “Public Subsidies to Sports Stadiums Do Not Stimulate Economic Growth.” Retrieved from www.ocpathink.org/economics/PublicSubsidiesforSports.html on April 14.Rosentraub, M. Swindel, D.(1991), Just Say No? The economic and political realities of small-town investment in minor league baseball., 5 Econ. Dev. D. 152. Zimmerman, D. (1996). Tax-Exempt Bonds and the Economics of Professional Sports Stadiums, CRS Report for Congress (Washington, DC: retrieved from Congressional Research Services www.us.gov).