Trine prof co-authors textbook on sports ticket sales, revenue

Zander Atwood, assistant professor of sport management and director of the Center for Sports Studies at Trine University, is co-author of a new textbook covering sports ticket sales and revenue generation.

“Fundamentals of Ticket Sales and Revenue Management” is currently available on Amazon in paperback and Kindle editions.

“The purpose of the textbook is to bridge the gap between academic theory and real-world applications in the sports and entertainment industry,” Atwood said. “With very few inexpensive-to-free options in academia for this kind of textbook, we aimed to write an affordable, accessible resource for students and young professionals around the world, eager and willing to learn more about ticket sales, operations and revenue generation.”

Written over the summer

Brandon Podgorski, Atwood’s predecessor at Trine, approached him about contributing to the textbook.

Atwood began writing last summer, immediately after the spring semester. He wrote Chapter 2, “The Role of Ticket Sales in Sports Revenue” and Chapter 13, “Event Day Operations and Customer Experience.”

“Much of the knowledge and skills I’ve learned over the years was information that became almost second nature to me, so it was relatively easy to write about it and explain it in a way that’s easy for students and young professionals to understand,” he said. “It felt good to know everything I’ve built up over my career can now be put to pen and paper and provided as a valuable resource to the next generation of sports industry talent.”

His mother, Stacey Atwood, helped edit and review the textbook’s multiple rough drafts.

“As a grade school English teacher for over 35 years, she enjoyed the opportunity to review this textbook and now has a greater appreciation for the work I’ve done over my career,” he said.

Atwood said that while he was “very pleased” to see the book in print, the process isn’t over.

“We know we need to continue building upon this textbook over time,” he said. “As the industry continues to grow and advance, we have to continue improving and updating the information provided to better serve future generations of sports industry talent.”

The authors are applying for a PALNI Textbook Creation Grant, which would allow the book to be offered as an Open Educational Resource. In the meantime, Atwood is looking forward to incorporating the textbook into his Sport Management Capstone class during the next academic year.