Maccabi Tel Aviv Basketball: Professional Team as a Reflecton on Economy

Do sports teams make a city? or the other way around? At one time US sports franchises tried to convince city governments that sports teams are important to make the city an important destination site. The argument went, if a city is important enough to have other cultural sites like museums, symphonies and music halls, why not a sports stadium. This has been such a successful argument in the US that many cities have made the investment in a new stadium and attracted a sports team to come with it. Nobody has made the same argument to Tel Aviv. The city has two soccer teams, a basketball team and various other organizations running sailing, swimming and other sports clubs.

As Israel's second largest city (Jerusalem is first) and the center of Israel's central region, sports has plenty of drawing power. But unlike in the US and Europe, Israelis do not associate Tel Aviv as an attractive city because of basketball or football (soccer for you Americans). But still, Maccabi Tel Aviv basketball is one of the best teams in Israeli sports. It plays in the Euroleague against the best European teams. Yet, it still plays in small stadiums with teams here in Israel, in a much lower caliber games. So maybe sports stadiums do really matter. Maybe teams like Holon, Ashkelon and Haifa need to attract local fans with a new stadium and a better team.

So is the basketball team a push for a better city? Does it attract people and companies which would not have come otherwise? Does it help the economy of the city in such a way that it is really something the city must support? The way American NBA franchises tell cities in the US? I do not see it. I don't think that anyone here in Tel Aviv sees it either. Tel Aviv is somewhat different than Miami, Philadelphia or Toronto. It is not a regional city in a big country. It is a medium size city in a small country, spots fan wise isolated by itself (you are not going to see Jordanian or Egyptian fans in a regular game). But still, it's great to have one internationally known team playing in a great stadium. What Maccabi Tel Aviv brings to the city with it's high level playing is something that is hard to explain. Together with Nokia stadium you have a feel that you are somewhere else. We are not talking Boston, Los Angeles or Madrid. But still a real international team in a great stadium. It is almost like Tel Aviv is growing up a little. Just for that time while the game is on TV.