There has been much discussion about the ticket prices dropping compared to last year, leading up to Super Bowl LIX, with the Kansas City Chiefs facing off against the Philadelphia Eagles in a rematch of Super Bowl LVII, but this time at the Ceasars Superdome in New Orleans. As of Monday, this year’s average Super Bowl ticket price was $6,304, down roughly 33% from last year's average ticket price of $9,400. The cheapest ticket to the big game in the Big Easy can be found on StubHub for $2,886, as of Wednesday.  

Taylor Swift fans will see another year of the “Love Story” singer cheering on her boyfriend Travis Kelce and the Chiefs as they look to make history by being the first NFL team to achieve the coveted three-peat. So, is there a Chiefs “fatigue” factor for why the ticket prices are dropping? Also, is location a factor for why ticket prices are down compared to last year as New Orleans will be hosting the Super Bowl for a record 11th time?  

Temple Now caught up with Rick Ridall, professor of instruction and the executive director of industry and alumni relations in Temple University’s School of Sport, Tourism and Hospitality Management, to get his thoughts on why Super Bowl ticket prices have dropped this year and more.  

Rick Ridall is an expert in sports sales, marketing, event management and new business development, and he began his professional career as an employee with the Eagles. (Photography courtesy of Temple University’s School of Sport, Tourism and Hospitality Management) 

Temple Now: Why are Super Bowl ticket prices dropping more this year? 

Rick Ridall: The average ticket price for the Super Bowl is down about 14%, which is $1,300 less a ticket compared to last year around this time. You must first factor in the location as last year’s game was held in an accessible city like Las Vegas for the first time, which was one of the main drivers for why ticket prices jumped more. Also, Vegas has a newer stadium, Allegiant Stadium, that more fans were experiencing for the first time. It also drove people to experience Vegas, whether they had tickets or not, and/or bought tickets after they arrived because of all the buzz it generated. Although New Orleans is also an accessible destination that causes demand, the Super Bowl has already been held there for a record 11 times, which is tied with Miami for the city that has hosted it the most. Consumers who routinely purchase a ticket to the Super Bowl may have the feeling of “I already went to one in New Orleans,” so they know the demand isn’t quite as high, which has been a factor in ticket prices dropping this year. Also, the recent circumstances in New Orleans going back to the New Year’s Eve terrorist incident where people were killed and injured, so that perception of the city could deter people from just wanting to travel there in general. 

TN: Is the larger stadium capacity in New Orleans a factor as to why the Super Bowl tickets are dropping?  

RR: Last year Las Vegas expanded Allegiant Stadium to a 72,000 inventory for the Super Bowl. New Orleans’ Superdome holds about 83,000, so 11,000 tickets is just a drop in the bucket based on the demand, so the larger capacity helps make more tickets available, which is dropping ticket prices lower as well. 

TN: Is there also a Chiefs “fatigue,” as they are headed to their fifth Super Bowl in the last six seasons, reason for why ticket prices are dropping? 

RR: The teams and their history of how frequently they are in the Super Bowl drive the demand of customer interest and how many tickets are available. This year, the Chiefs are going for history as the first NFL team to achieve the three-peat and the Eagles have a tremendous fan base that also travels well. However, fans with the monetary means to go each year may say they’ve seen enough of the Chiefs in the Super Bowl, so demand is even less this year, causing the ticket prices to drop. Not to mention the Chiefs played against the Eagles in the Super Bowl only two years ago, so it adds to the feeling of “I already paid to experience this matchup.” The Cowboys are known as America’s team, yet haven’t played in the Super Bowls for years, so if they were in it this year, the ticket prices would likely be up an additional 15–20% above the average price right now. Similarly, the ticket prices would have been higher had the Buffalo Bills, Detroit Lions or Washington Commanders made it to the big game instead since it would have been a matchup that fans have not seen before. However, the Eagles and Chiefs have passionate fan bases that are extremely plugged in and will still certainly be represented at the game very strongly. 

TN: How exactly does the NFL distribute Super Bowl tickets?  

RR: The NFL controls 100% of the inventory for the big game tickets. First, the two Super Bowl teams each get an equal (17.5%) percentage of the tickets. The Eagles, for instance, have a lottery for their season ticket holders, who can purchase tickets first. The host team then receives a (5%) percentage of the tickets and then the ticket distribution is trickled down to the remaining 30 teams who each receive an equal percentage (1.2%), totaling 35%. Then the NFL retains 25% of the remaining tickets to sell to media members and corporate sponsors. The control factor and the actual inventory available to the general public get fairly reduced, which trickles into the marketplace, specifically available on secondary market websites like StubHub, Vivid Seats, SeatGeek, Gametime, TickPick and several others.  

TN: When is the best time to score the cheapest price on the big game tickets and are there psychological factors that influence ticket sales? 

RR: There’s always that initial spike in demand that first two to three days after the conference championship games. Then you start to get into that leveling-off period in ticket prices dropping during the early to mid-part week of the Super Bowl. The market will remain fluid over the next few days with a likely resurgence jump in ticket prices on Friday and Saturday by those arriving in NOLA without tickets and getting that impulse “fear of missing out.” People who went to New Orleans just to hang out may say well we are here now; we might as well buy a ticket. Also, since the days of chasing down a traditional ticket scalper for a physical ticket are long gone, it creates more spontaneous impulse buying because you have easy access at your fingertips. In short, expect ticket resellers to raise the ticket prices as we get closer to the Super Bowl. To avoid scams, remember all the ticket purchases are online only and authorized through certified ticket resellers like Vivid Seats, SeatGeek, StubHub and more.