When the Houston Astros win big, fans are ready to spend big
Have you heard the good news? The Houston Astros have won the World Series once again, jumpstarting widespread celebrations, including a massive parade held in downtown Houston on Monday. So, what do you think hundreds of thousands of very happy fans are going to do to celebrate? Spend.
Regardless of your opinion on the Astros, there’s no denying the economic impact hosting several games of the 2022 World Series has brought to Houston. Before their big win, KHOU 11 reported an estimated $12 to $14 million being brought in per home game. Out of the last six games played against the Phillies, three were held at home, including the last, World Series winning game on Saturday night.
Using those estimates, these three games would have brought in anywhere from $36 to $42 million. However, let’s not stop there. With a win like that at the last home game, consumers are more likely to spend a lot more at the local bar, restaurant, and especially on merchandise.
Shortly after their win, thousands of fans lined up outside Minute Maid Park to purchase 2022 World Series Champions gear, while hundreds of others stood outside multiple Academy Sports and Outdoors stores around the Houston area for the same reason.
In anticipation of the skyrocket in sales, the official Astros Team Store, located in Downtown Houston, announced late on Saturday that it would be open for 24 hours.
If fans weren’t in line for the Astros Team Store, they were out celebrating with the estimated one million fans attending the 1.7 mile parade on Monday afternoon. You might be wondering, ‘don’t these people have something better to do?’ Well, no, because multiple school districts and colleges in the Houston area canceled classes for this special occasion, while others simply skipped work to attend.
Considering the sheer number of people that would otherwise be in a setting that doesn’t entice consumer spending, one could only assume the vast amount of spending that occurred Monday afternoon in Downtown Houston. Although it’s too early to say how much was made over the weekend and yesterday, we can look back at the last World Series the Astros won, in 2017, and produce a pretty good estimate.
Back then, the World Series games brought in a total of $125 million to Houston’s economy, sending ripples into the local economy. East of downtown, also referred to as EaDo, saw businesses booming, among them 5,000 jobs positively impacted.
One business in particular, more like one owner, has seen tremendous gains since the Astros’ win, because of a bet he placed back in October.
Jim McIngvale, also known as “Mattress Mack,” the owner of Gallery Furniture in the Houston area, placed $10 million in bets on the Astros to win the 2022 World Series. Now, Mattress Mack will earn an estimated payout of $75 million, the largest payout in sports betting history.
Customers are also benefiting from his win, where customers who made purchases on mattresses over $3,000 before the Astros’ World Series win now qualify for it to be completely free.
If this will be anything like the 2017 World Series win, Houstonians and respective businesses will be celebrating this win for weeks to come.
