Study: Seahawks wins might mean $120 more in your pocket

We have argued for years about whether sports franchises are a boost to the local economy or basically neutral. But there is some research out there that indicates the rules are slightly different when you have a team that’s as successful as the Seattle Seahawks.

Dr. Michael Davis, an economics professor at the Missouri University of Science and Technology, did a study a few years back about the impact of successful franchises.

“We found that there was a positive impact of having a successful team, over a less successful team, to the degree that you could see an increase in personal per capita income of about $100 for a team that got to the level of 11 wins, versus one that had zero wins,” says Davis.

According to Davis, there are a couple of reasons they think the psychology of winning might provide this boost.

“It either could be the productivity, that’s one possibility, that they go into work on Monday and they’re going to do a better job because they’re in a better mood than if the team had lost,” says Davis. “We also suggest a second possibility, which is that they consume more, they go out and buy more things. Their children end up with a better Christmas if the team has had a really good season.”

By Davis’ logic, Seattleites can count on economic benefits, but shouldn’t get even more with a Super Bowl?

“We did find that in addition to having done well in the regular season, winning the Super Bowl does add in another $20 or so,” says Davis.

MyNorthwest.com’s Jamie Skorheim contributed to this report.