The Green Bay Packers, the NFL’s only publicly owned team, recently reported $42.7 million in net income for 2011.
The team set records for national revenue, local revenue, total profit from operations, net profit from operations and net income.
The Packers Hall of Fame had 156,000 visitors last year, and 137,000 people took Lambeau Field stadium tours, each besting previous highs in the 90,000s.
Over last winter, the Packers netted $64 million from a stock sale. The organization added 250,000 shareholders, tripling the number the team had before the sale.
“It was a very good year for the Packers,” Packers president and chief executive officer Mark Murphy said. “It was apparent to us … we continued to ride the wave of the Super Bowl.”
Record net income was the result of an additional $19 million in revenue and $11 million less in expenses for the fiscal year that ended March 31. Most of the revenue increase was in local income, the majority from Packers Pro Shop sales, which increased about $11 million last year, said Paul Baniel, vice president of finance. National revenue increased $8 million.
The Packers have said that to remain competitive they need to be among the upper half of income earners in the 32-team league. After the 2010-12 season, they ranked 10th. The league traditionally releases rankings in the fall.
The Packers also increased ticket prices in each of the last three years after several years without increases.
“It’s a balancing act. We want to be fair to fans. We want to be affordable to fans,” Murphy said. “We also want to be fair to our partners in the league.”
The Packers say they want ticket prices near the league average.
The team cut expenses across the board, including player costs, which were down $3.5 million.
