The suburban citizen., 1902-10-25
FOOTBALL COSTS MONEY
THE GAME PUTS GREAT WEALTH IN
CIRCULATION EVERY FALL.

Play Football in the United States--As
Much as $4,000 900 Taken in at the
Gate-Game stilI Spreading.
The intervi " with Frank Butter
worth. the former Yale full back. Gre
lted much comment among followers
Of the game. Mr. Butterwcrth said
there was too much tinkering with the
rules, that the game was being
changed from time TO time without
giving spectators and players time to
earn 1t. that it was being made 100
complicated and that weight and tac'
lies were crowding out individuality
and fundamental knowledge of the
game. Being an expert he is in po-
sition to speak and command arten-
ton; but. nevertheless. the game with
its burdens of intricacy, is advancing
In popular interest with tremendous
strides. Those who study the situa-
ton say the coming season-and prep
arations are already under way for
that season-will he the greatest to
date in the history of this splendid
game. This statement refers not to
attendance and gate receipts, but to
the number of teams and individuals
who will engage in the sport.
One who is qualified to speak on the
subject was asked the other day how
many players Of football he thought
there were in the United States, in
Guiding schoOlboys. cOllegians and
members of other amateur teams, re-
ferrlng. of course, TO the American col
lege game only. Fifty thousand
was the reply This is rough esti-
mate. but a conservative one. He es-
timated that there were 5000 teams in
the country and an average of fifteen
players TO a team is very small one.
At the big universities, such as Har-
ward, Yale. Princeton, Pennsylvania,
Columbia. Cornell. Michigan, Wiscon'
sin and numerous others. the squads
run from seventy-fve to 100 men each
in the other part of the season
The amount of money that is eX-
pended every season in supplying this
| army of youths and men with the nee
! essaries for conducting their cam
paigns is an interesting study in itself
| The game has spread from one ocean
to the other and from the northern to
the southern boundary of the country,
| and the money spent for railroad fare
| in carrying out the seasons schedule is
no small item. Then there are hotel
bills, training table expenses, expenses
for officials, liniment. employees to look
after the grounds and last. but by no
means least. the expenditure for equip.
ment, which means moleskins, jerseys,
sweaters. headgear. shoes and foot
balls.
"There is no game in the world that
puts the amount of money in circula.
tion that football does" said the au-
thority referred to; but this assertion
appears rather sweeping. Baseball
doubtless puts more money in circula-
ton, and racing, also, if racing can be
termed a game. But football circu.
lates a great quantity of money. never.
theless, enough TO keep a big pack Of
wolves from numerous doors. Some
of the big colleges spend as much as
$4,000 every fall for body equipment
alone and the entire expense account
of one college last fall, and it is not
as big as some other colleges either
was $4,000. Take ten well known
universities. say Harvard, Yale, Prince
ton, Pennsylvania, Cornell, Columbia
Dartmouth. Brown Williams and La
fayette, and it is estimated that they
will spend for football regalia. which
are principally uniforms total of
$4,000 each season, and these ten form
but a small part Of the gridiron com
munity of the entire country.
"How much do the football teams
spend a season. said the man already
quoted. THAT is a hard question to
answer offhand, but in roud numbers
l should say $1,O00000 / don't believe
that is a cent exaggeratiOn. Football
you know, is a very profitable sport
and the colleges make much more out
of it than they spend. The football
profits support the crews and other ath
letic branches. With seats 81 apiece
and crowds from $1,000 to 10000 at the
big games. you can readily see that
big money is taken in at the gate. If
$1,OOO,0O0 is spent by all the football
teams of the country in a season /
should say that as much as S2,000,O00
is taken in.
THE game is spreading. l should
not be surprised TO see it taken up by
the soldiers this fall and teams or.
ganized at the various Army posts
1t is getting to be a democratic game,
the game for the people. New York
Sun.