I’ve been seeing lots of posts on all platforms about the season ticket situation. My question is what in the hell makes the front office think anything about the product (for the last 10 years+) warrants a price increase?

[u/yourenotmydad22]

I truly hope the fans show up in WAVES to cancel their season tickets and send a message. You force their hand when they can’t put asses in seats.

[u/ScrappyShua]

I’m not defending the front office, but what prices are lowering or staying the same anywhere in the country/world right now?

[u/redgr812 → u/ScrappyShua]

Arizona iced tea still 99 cents.

[u/AdventureDude24 → u/ScrappyShua]

Costco hotdog meal

[u/scroogesscrotum → u/ScrappyShua]

I understand it’s supply and demand, but they also need to know it’s degrading the game experience. Resale markets are flooded and away fans are invading the stadium every week.

It’s a perfect storm of inflated prices, poor team performance, and organizational indifference.

[u/dragonz-99 → u/scroogesscrotum]

It’s not supply and demand anymore. Every major business across the country has realized they can cater to the top percentile of wages (which is ever growing and the middle class is shrinking) and make more. Sell less for more. We’ve seen Disneyland do it, airlines do it, etc etc.

[u/scroogesscrotum → u/dragonz-99]

You are describing supply and demand lol.

[u/Ok-Jury1083 → u/scroogesscrotum]

No they aren’t, they are describing target marketing.

[u/scroogesscrotum → u/Ok-Jury1083]

Finite supply of tickets, high demand for tickets. Raise the price of the tickets until you reach the equilibrium of both curves.

It’s basic supply and demand bro.

[u/Ok-Jury1083 → u/scroogesscrotum]

They are raising prices to match the target market which is based on income in this case. When you target wealthy consumers you are going to price it to match whatever they’re willing to pay. Yes, supply and demand is involved but what he’s talking about is target marketing. It’s really not all that “basic”. There’s a lot of stuff factoring into pricing and why they’re choosing to target higher income demographics.

[u/scroogesscrotum → u/Ok-Jury1083]

How are they targeting higher income demographics other than raising prices to the point of pricing out lower income fans? Please explain.

[u/Ok-Jury1083 → u/scroogesscrotum]

That is target marketing. It’s what high end luxury brands and services do all the time. The best cars aren’t for lower income people, they are priced out. The best clothes aren’t for lower income people, they are priced out. The best food isn’t for lower income people, they’re priced out.

Now it’s sports entertainment, electronics, etc and has been trending that way for a while. Sports aren’t marketed to lower income people. You need to buy a bunch of subscriptions, you need to pay even higher prices for the same seats even if the product hasnt changed. It used to be courtside or suites that were for higher incomes but now they’re realizing they can just charge more for basics even if less seats are filled because they’ll make more profit than if they filled every seat at a lower price.

[u/scroogesscrotum → u/Ok-Jury1083]

This is complete nonsense. The NFL markets to all income levels. Especially with the elevated awareness for head injuries they have been in overdrive trying to get kids of all economic backgrounds to play the sport. They desperately need the next crop of athletes to sustain their own business model.

Only higher income people can typically afford going to games because it’s in such high demand as the most popular sport in the country. They know that they make more money on their finite supply of tickets by pricing according to a more traditional supply/demand curve and not catering to lower income people with discounted prices.

They have local tv agreements so that all the low income people can watch their team play on network television for “free”. Since they make most of their money on media deals now, this has been increasingly under pressure because companies are so desperate to televise their product that they are paywalling more and more out of their own greed.

Your dumb “targeted marketing” term can explain a few niche areas in their business model, but the umbrella term SUPPLY & DEMAND is what drives ticket pricing and includes whatever stupid terms you come up with.

[u/ryta1203 → u/scroogesscrotum]

Yep.

[u/dragonz-99 → u/scroogesscrotum]

It isn’t when demand isn’t filled. Disneyland hasn’t hit near peak park goer-ship since raising the prices, but the increase offsets any loss and so they can pay less people to be staffed at any one time. This isn’t middle school economics we’re talking here.

If Colts season tickets had a waitlist this would make sense. This isn’t Green Bay, there’s no reason to raise prices other than they’re trying to milk what they already have. Inevitably they’ll lose ticket holders, but I’m sure they have an actuary team looking at it all.

[u/RestoredX123 → u/ScrappyShua]

I’m interested to see the stats on this since some fans have said that theirs haven’t changed. But I think the point is no one wants to pay MORE for a product that is now LESS in quality.

[u/ryta1203 → u/RestoredX123]

If no one was paying the prices wouldn't be going up.

[u/CBate → u/ScrappyShua]

Yats

[u/user78804180]

I moved to Indy 3 years ago. Each year I've held off buying season tickets cause I don't trust the product. I went to the home opener this year, paid good money to watch us be non competitive, and am not planning to go to another game this year

[u/National-Broccoli-83 → u/user78804180]

Also questionable decision on moving to Indy

[u/ban_circumnavigation]

Are you asking why the largely incompetent front office (and back office) who've been rewarded / rewarding with renewed employment for a decade are wondering why a mediocre and worse product merits a price increase and renewed season tickets?

Are you serious?

[u/reds7310]

Ticket prices post Covid are just absurd all around sports. The same thing is happening to even watch sports now with all the streaming services. The bubble is gonna pop eventually

[u/Redjeepkev]

One thing. GREED

[u/ryta1203]

Has nothing to do with the product, they just want more money.

[u/vanillathrilla04]

Gotta pay for those shiny new jerseys

[u/Jfed1985]

My wife (a Bears fan) is a football fan in general. Frequently on a Sunday she’ll say “we should just get cheap tickets and go to the game today” on Sundays.

My response is always “meh. Waste of money” and that’s at the cheapest price I can find, way under face value.

It’s really hard to even think about spending money on this clown show.

Usually, we end up not going and just watching them lose on TV.

[u/ObviousKick3853]

OP, that's how the Baltimore Colts became the Indianapolis Colts.

[u/SugarOpposite7889]

Oh my sweet naive summer child. The ultra wealthy don’t care about whether or not a price change is warranted because it almost never is. They only thing they care about is whether or not we’ll pay it.

[u/Next-Succotash-3827]

My seats in section 310 went up $200 a seat!!

[u/Mediocre-Benefit4918]

Guys - you can’t look at this on a nominal basis. There are 9 home games next year. My per ticket cost is actually going DOWN next year. Of course prices are going to go up - you’re paying for the ninth game. They are actually doing you a “favor” and not tacking it on at the same rate as your 2026 per game cost.

[u/shasta_masta]

Well, they might have lit $114M on fire with that Pierce contract, so they are passing the buck to fans.

[u/IUpringlequads]

Amen. When I cancelled, I got pressure to “not lose my seniority” and “not make any rash decisions before the regular season ends”…..

[u/redgr812]

It's called business. NFL doesn't give a shit about ticket sales it's all tv rights deals. The only model was if you didn't sale tickets you went broke. Not anymore. So charge 1000 for 100 seat we now only need to sale 1 ticket vs 10. Because you idiots will keep paying it, they will keep raising it.

[u/redleg50]

I heard the increase is something like $500 per seat? If true, that is insane and shows that the entire organization is not in-tune with reality.

[u/Upstairs-Success-181 → u/redleg50]

Its not even close to that. Mine barely went up at all. Mine went to $1600 total for two seats. Up from $1530 last year. But with that, we do have an additional home game. So honestly, i dont consider it an “increase”

[u/Lithium1978 → u/redleg50]

Depends on your section it seems. My neighbor's seats in the 500s went up $5 per seat for each game. Roughly $50 per year.

My seats in the lower end of the 400s went up $25 per game $250 per year. (Around 20% for me)

[u/Jinno → u/redleg50]

Depends on where your seats are.