Looking to score Super Bowl LVI tickets?
Get ready to dig deep because it’s going to cost you. The average ticket price for a seat at the Big Game is $9,496 with the cheapest going for $5,300, according to TicketIQ, an event search engine. Top VIP seats are priced at $67,739, or roughly the cost of a Tesla Model Y.
“I can’t afford it,” said Sal Martinez, a member of the Westminster-based Golden Rams Booster Club. “I don’t have $20,000 for a pair of tickets. So instead of SoFi Stadium, I’ll be watching the game from home at ‘sofa stadium.’ “
On Thursday, the most expensive pair of VIP tickets found on StubHub cost $147,304, counting fees. But if you’re craving an even bigger high-roller experience, a single $939,850 ticket purchased through TicketIQ will net you a 12-person suite.
Sorry fans, there are no cheap “nose bleed” seats at SoFi Stadium.
Some might roll the dice
But all is not lost … maybe.
Pechanga Resort Casino in Temecula is offering the gambling types a chance at free tickets. You’ll have to play the slots or table games between 6 and 10 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 4. Promotional drawings will happen hourly and a grand prize winner will get a pair of tickets to the Bengals-Rams game, plus $10,000 in cash.
“This is the biggest sports event in the U.S.,” said Tjeerd Brink, the casino’s general manager. “It generates a lot of excitement and we wanted to be part of that excitement. We thought this would be a great way to reward one of our players.”
Pechanga is a sponsorship partner with SoFi Stadium, the Los Angeles Rams and the Los Angeles Chargers.
Seats out of reach for most
One thing is certain: Most rank-and-file Rams fans can’t afford the prices ticket sellers are asking for Super Bowl LVI. That includes Martinez, the Rams booster club member.
“This is the most expensive Super Bowl ever,” the 59-year-old Los Alamitos resident said. “It’s very frustrating because there are lots of die-hard fans who would love to be at the game, but the prices are astronomical. Some of the cheapest tickets I’ve seen are $7,000 to $8,000, and by the time you add in taxes and fees it’s about $10,000.”
Martinez, whose Golden Rams Barber Shop serves as a nod to his favorite team, is a Rams season ticket holder. That gives him access to a designated seat as well as Rams-related events throughout the year. But if he wants to go to the Super Bowl he’ll still have to pay the going rates like everyone else.
Los Angeles hosted the first Super Bowl in 1967 and snagged the honor a second time in 1993 when the Dallas Cowboys defeated the Buffalo Bills at the Rose Bowl.
Supply and demand
Kathleen Davis, CEO of the Sport Management Research Institute in Carlsbad, isn’t surprised by the high ticket prices for Super Bowl LVI.
“It’s just the basic supply-and-demand curve,” she said. “There are all of these influences on price points — Cincinnati hasn’t been in the Super Bowl in 33 years, and this is only the second time in history that the Super Bowl has hosted the home team.”
The last time was just last year when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers hosted Super Bowl LV at Raymond James Field.
To get a sense of how much Super Bowl ticket prices have increased, consider this: In 1967, the average ticket price (adjusted for inflation) was $92, according to TheStreet. By 2000, it had risen to $485, and in 2020 the inflation-adjusted ticket price averaged $6,785.
Price inflation has also hit local hotels.
Prince Pulical, a general manager with Best Western Plus hotels, said rates at the company’s Southern California locations rose significantly once fans realized who the two competing teams would be for Super Bowl LVI.
“In the past, rates have averaged $140 to $150 a night and maybe $200 for the weekend,” he said. “But now people are paying up to $700 a night during Super Bowl time.”
Davis said it’s simply a matter of priority.
“Your dream could be to go to the Super Bowl, or maybe it’s Fiji, and it may be something you’ve saved for all of your life,” she said. “When you have that kind of passion … you’ll pay to go.”
Source: Orange County Register
Be First to Comment