August 7, 2020
NFL May Lose Billions On The Ticket Market If Fans Aren’t Allowed In The Stands
The coronavirus pandemic has hit the world in such a way that no one is left unblemished. In the sports world, the participation of fans in the stands can help the home team and lift the spirits of the players as well. But there’s also a financial impact—one which will vary from team to team this year, as the prospect of fans attending games will depend on directives from the governments of each state. According to Fox Business, with fans not being able to enter the stadiums, the NFL could end up losing a massive $7 billion throughout the upcoming season.
So far, the following teams have announced that they will not be playing games in front of eager fans: the Las Vegas Raiders, New York Giants, New York Jets, and Philadelphia Eagles. Those four teams have already confirmed while the league waits for the other 28 teams to make a decision.
The Las Vegas Raiders, who will be playing in a new stadium after moving from California, stand to lose about $571 million with no fans in attendance at the brand new Allegiant Stadium according to data from TicketiQ. It will be the first NFL team playing a full season in Las Vegas on a regular basis and the new stadium was expected to attract a new set of fans to fill the stadium.
The Raiders had the second-highest secondary market average list price for tickets to a game at $1,098 per seat, according to the ticket search engine. The Giants are expected to lose about $298.9 million, the Jets could lose up to $288.4 million, and the Eagles may lose $171.4 million.
The Denver Broncos, which may end up losing the second-most on the ticket market at $491 million, have not come to a decision yet.
“[Local officials are] proceeding with caution and so are we. We want to do the right thing. I don’t have a set number of fans for you nor do I know when fans will be in the stands. We’re going to work through that. We’re going to do that in partnership with the governor and the mayor, the City of Denver,” CEO Joe Ellis has said.