For a long time, standard operating procedure in the NFL was for teams to price tickets the same for every game: A marquee contest against a division rival would cost just as much as a mediocre game against a second-tier opponent. But that’s no longer the case.
Now, the Associated Press reports, half of all NFL teams are using variable pricing, to make the more important games more expensive. That makse business sense, as teams can make more money off bigger games by charging more for those tickets, and can ensure sellouts to lesser games by charging less for those tickets.
“Variable/dynamic pricing allows our organization to set single game prices that more closely reflect market value,” Chargers CEO A.G. Spanos told the AP.
The Seahawks, 49ers, Cardinals, Rams, Falcons, Lions, Vikings, Bills, Jets, Patriots, Dolphins, Chiefs, Chargers, Browns and Steelers are all using variable pricing for single-game seats, and the Cowboys are using variable pricing for their standing-room “party passes.”
The reality is that so many tickets are bought and sold on the secondary market that there’s long been variable pricing unofficially, even if the face value of all tickets was the same. By introducing variable pricing, NFL teams are really just responding to that market.
