A League of Their Own

By Ron Allen 

That movie title from a 1990s baseball film might well reflect the attitude of those in charge of American polo. The sport has been on the decline for several years. Examples? There is no American player on the horizon as a 10-goal prospect. Remember when 26 goal disappeared eight years ago? Four years later the USPA purchased their own club in south Florida and the bottom line remains questionable. NPC is the only place where you can find 22 goal polo and it's only for two months a year. The number of polo clubs have not grown and membership is stagnant. 

Key leadership jobs in this group are unfilled going into the new season, which is just a few weeks away. For the fourth time in under ten years the USPA is looking for yet another CEO. The last one was earning a half million dollars a year. The Manager of NPC is also gone. No one has been hired to run their food service or facilities management and other important staff positions.

 

The USPA has a new streaming service ‘B Live’. They stream mostly fashion shows and dog shows. Nonmembers of the association will have to pony up $150 a year to watch what has historically been mediocre coverage. How does that translate into growing exposure for the sport? 

Money is not the issue. They have a $190 million portfolio and Global Polo has been contributing millions of dollars annually to the USPAs budget which includes a $7 million a year payroll. Maybe it’s time for the membership to demand some real changes and accountability. Has American polo become minor league operating on a major league budget? 

 

“If you don’t know where you are going, you’ll end up somewhere else.”