Super Bowl Economics

1/30/2012

From SmartMoney, here's a fun article about the 10 Things the Super Bowl Won't Say. For the purposes of the quiz you will only be accountable for the first one, "Good luck getting a ticket." However, Texas Tech gets a mention on number 7 so read on if you'd like.

What is going on in the background that drives the ticket price this high? How does scarcity factor into this scenario? Is the price of a ticket somehow sending a signal to consumers?

John Bowman

1/30/2012 11:27:44 am

I believe the biggest factor in driving up the price of Super Bowl tickets is the fact that tickets are reserved and sold long before anyone knows who will be playing. Once teams are decided demand for tickets spikes in areas that have a high population density of fans of teams playing. Then people who have tickets can sell them at a cost determined completely by demand; which for an event that draws 111 million viewers (6. ads outshine the game) is quite a demand.

Matt Bonano

2/10/2012 05:38:01 pm

I agree that the teams playing does have a huge factor in the fan base, but there is still an enormous amount of people that will go to the game no matter who is playing. Too many people look forward to the Super Bowl, and won't give up their tickets just because their favorite team isn't playing. It's a matter of sport.

Jacob Page link

1/30/2012 12:23:23 pm

HAHA, Number 10- take you heart medicine before you watch the superbowl.

R#10399233

1/31/2012 08:12:09 am

Being that the Superbowl is consider one of the most, if not the most watched championship game in history, these ticket prices are expected. People are getting the privilege to watch the best professional athletes on this planet, go head to head for the crown. Some people luck out and are able to attain regular priced Superbowl tickets when they go on sell, but for the ones that don't? They have to pay the price. Literally. That's when scarcity comes into play, because people want to go to the Superbowl, but some don't have the money to pay for a ticket whenever they're marked up to be resold.

R#10446726

2/9/2012 08:08:40 am

I agree also. Not to mention the fact that people increase the price of the tickets no matter who is playing just for the shear thrill of being at the Super Bowl.

William Crawford

1/31/2012 09:24:30 am

The NFL is the most popular and most grossing league in the United States, so it mostly isn't surprising that the biggest game of the most watched league in the country has almost unobtainable tickets. The $800,000 for a suite is the most ridiculous thing I have ever seen sports venue wise.

R10409604

1/31/2012 11:49:31 am

Considering the Superbowl is such a huge and famous event, it didn't come as a shock that the prices were so high for tickets. The price for the suite and other expenses was what surprised me the most.

R10406636

2/9/2012 11:48:01 am

I agree that people are crazy for paying that much though. But I guess they love their football!

Matt

2/10/2012 05:33:01 pm

No kidding the prices are high for the super bowl. For the NCAA Football National championship game in 2011, my friend was offered twice the value of the tickets that he bought. This is one of the biggest, if not the biggest sports events in the world. Everyone in the United States will be watching this game. You have to be first in line or ready to pay the money to see this game

Jamal Atwell

1/31/2012 11:50:56 am

The price gets so high simply because they can do it. Over the past 10 years prices have probably soared quite a bit year to year to outrageous prices which sort of instills the idea that tickets are going to be that expensive and that's just what you have to do to get them. You probably wouldn't ever see tickets going at $15,000 for a hockey game or something on the smaller scale because people don't have the idea in their mind that it's going to be expensive and therefore they won't pay for it

R10419821

2/2/2012 09:19:37 am

I agree, the NFL knows people are going to buy the expensive tickets. People like to waste money on big things like this, things that some people only get to do once in a lifetime or never at all

R10433679

2/8/2012 10:14:18 am

I also agree that the NFL knows that people will pay the outrages price to attend the super bowl because it is one of the most important sporting event to Americans. When they increase prices they know they will still have buyers for every ticket. I also have to agree that people do like to waste money because there was a story about one Giants fan who placed a $1,000 bet that the first score was going to be a safety, Who would do something like this? Somebody who has the money to waste and the Super Bowl is a perfect occassion to place a dumb bet, but luckily for this guy he came out on top and won $100,000.

R10321572

2/8/2012 12:20:11 am

I completely agree. Even when price increases, the deman is still the same. NFL is just getting away with more and more raising the price higher and higher because the demand to go to a high-caliber championship is always going to be fervent

Caroline Andrews

1/31/2012 12:39:25 pm

The price for Super Bowl ticket prices do not surprise me one bit. Most of the people who attend the Super Bowl are willing to pay the outrageous prices. The hard part about purchasing a ticket is when they are sold in such advance before the teams are even chosen to play in the Super Bowl. I mean this is the game that people plan to attend/watch way before hand. I read a statistic that said more than 120 million people viewed at least part of last year's Super Bowl. I mean if I had the money to afford a Super Bowl ticket I would go in a heartbeat just to say I have been to a Super Bowl game. This is the biggest/most viewed game of the year, and so if people are wanting to attend, it is not hard to bump up the price. People really want to attend the game will pay the price.

Logan Johnson

1/31/2012 01:07:15 pm

The biggest reason that these tickets are becoming so high priced is that they are taking on a scarcity value which is based on how available the seats are and how much the seats are in demand. Superbowel game seats are a luxury item, (items that are not a necessity) and so like many other nonessential items they become high priced such as: sports cars, watches, boats, etc.... The more in demand they are even further drives up the price until only the wealthy can afford them. Just like sports cars and other items that were mentioned the Superbowl is well overpriced than normal NFL game tickets just as a Lamborghini will be more than a Ford Mustang or a Rolex more than a Fossil.

R10410812

1/31/2012 01:30:45 pm

I'm not surprised at the prices. The tickets are at such a high demand so why not shoot the prices as high as they can if people are willing to pay for them. I think it's ridiculous to pay that much for a game though, when you are most likely getting a crappy seat anyway..unless you pay the even more ridiculous suits.

R10430292

1/31/2012 10:16:17 pm

This is so crazy! Obviously the extremely high price shows consumers that they are a hot item, however I don't understand why people don't just watch it at home. I realize there is some added excitement about actually seeing it in person but I could never imagine paying that much money when I could watch the same thing with a better view in high definition in my own living room. Plus, for the same price you could buy 5 times as much beer and food at home than you could in the stadium.

David Yeary

2/1/2012 12:32:10 am

Since the Superbowl is the end of the football season, everyone wants these tickets because the Superbowl is it, its the big finale at the end and people want to be a part of it. Due to the high demand, they can charge ridiculous prices

Wesley Hayes

2/1/2012 12:41:46 am

Supply and Demand thats all this is. Because the supply has only a set number and the demand for them due to the popularity of the sport and how much money it has grossed over the past 20 years the NFL can charge as much as they want. If the average ticket cost $4,000 and approximately 100,000 people will be there, thats 400,000,000 dollars which is not counting the suites, concessions or the commercials.

R10461071

2/1/2012 01:01:07 am

I think the tickets to the super bowl get so expensive because it is the place were most of any americans would want to be and by this the demand for the tickets gets higher. Also tickets are sold at the begginning of the season and when the teams are decided a very different types of fans may want to go. I compare this to the tickets for the Masters at Augusta.

P. Mladenovic

2/1/2012 01:06:06 am

I believe the ticket prices for the super bowl are so high simply because the NFL knows people love football and would spend ridiculous amounts of money just to go to the game.

R10419821

2/2/2012 09:16:31 am

so much money goes into the Super Bowl to make it the Huge attraction it is, that without high ticket prices, all the entertainment and security needed at the game would not be possible. Also, the NFL must know that people are willing to spend up to 800,000 for a good seat so why not set the price that high?

10413789

2/3/2012 01:01:26 am

A lot of the tickets are given to representatives of the superbowl and they are given the job to sell them. Then the people who but them have the opportunity to sell them again. Eventually a lot of people re-sell the tickets until the the price is ridiculously high. Therefore, in order to get a lower priced ticket, you would have to know someone that is higher up on the chain.

R10416464

2/3/2012 03:21:40 am

The Super bowl is the most watched television broadcast in the United States; and considered the "best football game of the year" so of course tickets are going to be expensive. The demand for the tickets are so high and the supply of the tickets are so limited; the NFL can raise the prices to outrageous amounts and fans will pay to become apart of history.

R10412481 link

2/3/2012 03:25:38 am

The Super Bowl is possibly the most watched sports event in the US. The NFL knows that some people are die-hard football fans and will do whatever it takes to get their hands on some Super Bowl tickets. That is why the demand for tickets goes up, which allows the NFL to bump up the prices as much as they want.

Destry Dacus

2/3/2012 03:36:59 am

Going to the Super Bowl is like an once in a lifetime opportunity to most people, but for some it's a yearly thing. I do believe they have presale tickets way before the teams are known who will play. With this being said the closer the event comes the more expensive the tickets become. Let's just hope that Lucas Oil Stadium doesn't have the same problem as Jerry's World had last year by over selling the amount of tickets to consumers.

R10453152

2/5/2012 04:31:45 am

I believe the NFL is going to keep raising the price of their tickets until they find a point where no one will buy them. So until that point is reached, ticket prices will continue to rise.

R10425881

2/5/2012 02:26:16 pm

It's easy for the NFL to charge that much for tickets, if someone can spend that much on plane tickets and accommodation, it's very likely that the person can afford a ticket. It's amazing how much money is made from ads.

Nathan Clayton

2/5/2012 11:22:54 pm

The reason for ticket prices, hotel rates and airfare being drove up so drastically for the Superbowl is a combination of the extreme scarcity of seats available and the high demand for those seats. Since the surrounding area has to accommodate these ticket holders they too are increasing their rates simply because the ticket holders have no other option but to pay these extremely high rates.

R10342974

2/6/2012 04:50:42 am

The ticket prices for the Super Bowl are so high because the demand for them is very high. The more people demand for a ticket for an event that happens once a year boosts the prices up. Scarcity comes into play because there are limited numbers of seats in the stadium as well as limited hotel rooms. If you want a nicer hotel room and a box seat at the Super Bowl you must have a lot of money and plan it in advance. The prices of the tickets is sending the signal of the Super Bowl is for the wealthy. You cannot attend a Super Bowl game if you do not have the amount of money required. But the wealthy will continue paying for their seats, so the prices will continue rising.

R10497053

2/7/2012 06:00:32 am

I beleive that the price of the tickets are so high because people just want to go and have the bragging right to say that they went.

R10373875

2/7/2012 09:59:10 am

I believe that the reason tickets are getting so high is because the NFL CAN do that and people will pay the price to watch the game. Also so they can pay their executives and what not. Seeing that this is the biggest game of the year, of course the tickets are going to be very expensive and they are limited so they can make the prices really whatever the NFL wants to. Yeah the price of a ticket is sending a signal, a signal saying spend more money.

R10433673

2/7/2012 01:52:28 pm

My opinion of why the tickets are so high is because of the publicity and popularity over the super bowl. In the background the NFL knows that they can raise the price of tickets and people will still buy tickets no matter how high in price the tickets are. Scarcity factors into this by having a limited number of seats, and seeing how popular the super bowl is, they can raise the price.

Wesley Quigley

2/7/2012 03:12:01 pm

The Super Bowl is the most watched thing on television every year. There is not a single person in America who does not know what the Super Bowl is, so of course a lot of people are very interested in seeing the game that millions and millions of viewers are watching at home live. There is a very limited amount of seats in a stadium in comparison to how many people want to watch the game live. Also, the price itself tells consumers, "Hey this is something that everybody wants. Not everybody can get there hands on a ticket, so if you do get the opportunity, you should take it without a second thought."

R10441854

2/8/2012 01:30:16 am

Some people have forgotten that the lockout was this summer and Rodger Goodell agreed to a billion dollar "legacy fund" for retired players. Also the NFL owes money in court fees, and lost money at the beginning of the season with ticket sales. Lots of fans were still bitter that there was almost not a season and season ticket holders dropped their tickets. To add to all of this, this game was one of the biggest rivalry games in history, previously the Patriots had beaten the Giants in a 17-10 victory. "Pat's Nation" and Giant fans are a huge breed, the NFL not only had to raise the prices, but this was the perfect game to.

R10310218

2/8/2012 09:19:12 am

The ticket prices are driven up because of how available they are early on. As the season progresses tickets become less and less available. The prices are already set high as it is but once they are close to sold out or sold out completely is when the true price jump occurs. Fans of the two competing teams for the super bowl then scramble for tickets late in the year. With the number of tickets being limited the price monopoly begins. Ticket holders and vendors can increase the price with no questions because of the magnitude of this event.

Aaron Workman

2/9/2012 09:12:28 am

I believe what causes the prices to go so high is that the people who are selling the tickets (people who bought tickets way in advance to sell them for a profit) know that the buyers will pay almost anything to get the tickets since there are only a limited amount of seats. So they can ask for whatever price they want and get it.

Alfredo Galvan

2/9/2012 10:30:48 am

I agree with Aaron, there should definitely be a way to address that issue properly. It’s not fair for the middle class fans that works overtime and save money for months in order to buy one ticket. The individuals that abuse the system like this should receive a penalty.

R10300090

2/9/2012 11:20:33 am

they do it because they can.

R10460329

2/9/2012 11:45:47 am

All the price listings were no surprise to me, because no matter how much they make the prices for the tickets, people will still buy them no matter what. What kind of surprised me was the price for the booth tickets, its a bit ridiculous.

R10406636

2/9/2012 11:46:09 am

It doesn't surprise me at all that the tickets are that expensive. The Super Bowl is the biggest game in football, and football is arguably the biggest sport in America so it only makes sense that tickets for the game would be outrageously expensive.

10474647

2/9/2012 12:23:42 pm

If you've ever been to a big sporting event you know that it comes with a price. But it isnt all about the game its the experience. The market up these tickets doesnt surprise me cause people want to make the most money they can and people are willing to pay this price cause there is no other game to go to. So its like gas, we have to pay the price beacuse we need it and have no other way to run our cars. Well these people who want to go to the game have no reason but to pay these prices because there's no way around it.

R10354244

2/9/2012 02:27:48 pm

I believe that the reason for the rise in ticket price has to do with the amount of times that ticket gets sold and resold. Many of the superbowl tickets are bought early just to be sold for a higher price later when the names of the teams playing are released. Also the scarcity related with the number of seats is a big factor. There is a limited number of seats in the stadium that could be sold, and a dramatically larger number of people looking for tickets.

R10506939

2/9/2012 04:01:15 pm

While the prices of these tickets may seem ridiculous to an average person, in reality many people have turned football into a religon. The Superbowl isn't a movie, or a concert on tour; You get one opportunity to see this event per year. With that being said, the amount of people who can attend is obviously very limited in comparsion to the amount of people who view the game. As in any market, the tickets are rewarded to the highest bidder. Survival of the fittest. It is the fans and their love of the game that drives these tickets to such unreal prices and I have to say that if the Eagles make the Superbowl, I wouldn't hesitate to sell my truck so that I could afford a ticket.

R10397040

2/9/2012 11:01:03 pm

If i ever got my hands on a superbowl ticket I would sell it in a heartbeat. Unless of course it were the Cowboys playing, but I don't think that will be happening anytime soon unfortunately.

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