Fans to abandon the NFL due to frustrations over lockout?

Despite frustrations brewing from fans over the NFL lockout, it's hard to imagine many fans abandoning the league once games begin, however, a legitimate poll from Mason-Dixon shows that some fans may abandon the NFL.

Tallahassee, FL – A stunning new Sachs/Mason-Dixon poll raises the specter that the NFL could lose hundreds of millions of dollars as more than 1 of every 4 NFL fans say they will sit out the season if it is negatively impacted by the stalled and prolonged NFL lockout.

The poll shows that a startling 27 percent of NFL fans would choose to stay home rather than attend an NFL game and do something else rather than watch their favorite teams on television if the lockout shortens or negatively affects the NFL season - breaking a fundamental trust with a core base of fans if the two sides fail to reach agreement.

“Fans are the lifeblood of the National Football League and without them, there are no large profits for owners and television networks and no multi-million dollar salaries for players,” said Ron Sachs, President of Ron Sachs Communications . “The greatest danger of the lockout is tarnishing the sterling brand of the NFL to its core fan base – and that kind of incalculable damage could take years to repair.”

Sachs said the poll results “clearly indicate the owners and players should consider the risks of inaction: significantly less revenue, fewer fans in stadiums and living rooms and a tragic loss of trust among a huge slice of the NFL’s market.”

According to the NFL Fan Cost index – a key economic indicator of the economic impact of NFL fans – the NFL average in 2010 was $76.47 per fan . Based on the polls’ findings, the NFL risks losing hundreds of millions if the NFL lockout shortens or delays the start of the 2011 season. The NFL is the largest domestic sports league in the world, generating $7.8 billion in revenue in 2010 .

Among the polls’ key findings:

* Among the self-described NFL fans surveyed, 27 percent – including 24 percent of men and 32 percent of women – said they do not plan to watch or attend an NFL game next season if a lockout were to occur.

* 13 percent of NFL fans surveyed are not sure what they will do if the lockout occurs.

The Sachs/Mason-Dixon Poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 5.4 percent. A total of 344 self-described NFL fans were interviewed between May 23 and 24 nationwide by telephone. The poll was commissioned by Tallahassee-based Ron Sachs Communications and conducted by Mason-Dixon Polling and Research, Inc.