Something that can continually bring revenue month after month to a game company after releasing a product. A possible shock for sports fans. However, I don't know if pay for play online gaming will ever be as big in the sports game market as it is in the role playing market. Sports games, in general, require a more efficient transfer of data from one machine to the next. Action gamers are intolerant of net lag, and for good reason.
Role playing gamers are more into the ongoing commitment that pay for play online gaming requires.
I don't see this as being as attractive to sports gamers who are after more immediate gratification. There would be a strong core group of sports gamers who would make this step, IMO, but not in the numbers needed to make it truly viable. I may be totally off base with my opinion, but that's honestly what I see from my perspective and it's backed up by my own feeling about online action gaming. I would like to say that there's an ongoing push for this type on online multiplayer community, but I don't see the financial incentive to drive it at this point. Well, I'm not sure about where you are, but I'm still sitting in snow.