Michigan State's Presence In Final Four Boosts Ticket Sales Effort
 |
Final Four Ticket Prices Jump After
Michigan State Clinches Spot |
Ticket brokers for this weekend's NCAA men's Final Four at Ford Field "reported experiencing record-low sales and ticket values" until Michigan State Univ. (MSU) clinched a spot Sunday, according to Suzette Hackney of the DETROIT FREE PRESS. StubHub PR Dir Sean Pate said that Final Four ticket prices climbed from Sunday to Monday "from an average cost of $399 to $437." Pate: "You don't often see a Final Four where a home-state team gets to play in front of their fans at home. The prices are creeping up and I certainly think fans recognize that they won't have to invest in travel and accommodations, so there will be more willingness to pay a little more." Still, Hackney notes Final Four tickets "usually average about $600, save for 2007, when the average ticket cost was $578 for the tournament held in Atlanta" (DETROIT FREE PRESS, 3/31). In Detroit, Catherine Jun reports tickets to Saturday's MSU-Connecticut game "fetched as much as $2,500 each on StubHub.com" following MSU's win over Louisville Sunday, and on eBay, a seller "hoping to profit from the post-game frenzy posted tickets for $1,750 a pair" (DETROIT NEWS, 3/31). The AP's Jim Litke noted the "tough economic times have been reflected in the thinned-out crowds at nearly every tournament site this year," and until MSU clinched a spot in the Final Four, "predictions that crowds of 72,000 would fill up Ford Field for next weekend's game sounded like wishful thinking." Litke: "Now, maybe not" (AP, 3/30). CBS play-by-play announcer Jim Nantz, who will call the Final Four games with Clark Kellogg, said of MSU's presence, "It really gave this Final Four an extra boost that's just undeniable. ... We were able to give it that extra little kick with the home state represented" (FREEP.com, 3/30).
RISKY BUSINESS: In N.Y., Lynn Zinser writes, "From one point of view, the Final Four in Detroit is an ambitious enterprise. ... From another, it is a huge risk: the local economy is in tatters, and there is the prospect that many of those 70,000-plus seats could be empty." But an NCAA spokesperson said that a lottery of about 20,000 tickets to the public was the "largest ever and sold out" (N.Y. TIMES, 3/31).
|
Related Stories By Company
|
Related Stories By Sport
|
NCAA Reselling Lucas Oil Stadium Suites
November 10, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
College Football Coaches' Salaries Rise
November 10, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
NCAA HQs Will Receive $35M Expansion
November 2, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
Presidents: Coaches' Salaries Excessive
October 27, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
Tough Year For NCAA Merchandise
October 15, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
|
San Diego State AD Jeff Schemmel Resigns
November 20, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
Report: Minorities Not Getting Coaching Jobs
November 19, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
Penn State Alters Football Season Tix Plan
November 18, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
Russell Athletic Pressured On Labor
November 18, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
St. Peter's, Monmouth Benefit From ESPN
November 18, 2009 :
SportsBusiness Daily
|
|
