Admission to the Super Bowl requires some of the most expensive tickets in entertainment. NFL fans and celebrities alike annually shell out small fortunes for the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to experience the sporting event of the year live and in person. But have tickets to the big game always required a stack of greenbacks?
History of Super Bowl Ticket Prices
Though the Super Bowl is now known as the premier entertainment event in American sports, it wasn’t always such a prestigious undertaking. Sure, football was already growing in popularity by the time the league began playing the big game, but it wasn’t nearly the behemoth it is now.
Accordingly, Super Bowl tickets back in the 1970s didn’t cost as much as a used car. Frankly, it wasn’t even close. Tickets to the first Super Bowl (though it wasn’t called that then) were $12 apiece, adjusted for inflation to equal about $106.
The average price didn’t top $40 until the mid-’80s and didn’t break the $100 barrier until 1988. Even adjusted for inflation, that would cost fans today an average of under $250, a “minor” wallet dent compared to today’s ballooning costs.
In the 1990s, the league really began ramping up the glitz and glamor factor. Earlier halftime performances of marching bands and Disney characters gave way to Gloria Estefan and Michael Jackson, and prices began to skyrocket.
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By 1995, the average price had doubled in just seven years to $200 ($374 inflation adj.), which then doubled again in another seven years to $400 ($635 inflation adj.) in 2002.
In 2009, the average Super Bowl ticket price finally shattered the $1,000 mark, and it wasn’t slowing down. It took just six more years to reach $1,500 in 2015, and by the later 2010s, it jumped by the thousands.
The average price in 2019, depending on which purchasing platform you look at, reached as high as $4,300. In 2020, it nearly doubled to over $7,100.
With just hours to go until kickoff, prices for Super Bowl 57 are averaging around $6,800, again depending on the purchasing platform. That’s a slight decline from the last couple of seasons but still a substantial leap from a decade ago.
Where To Purchase Super Bowl Tickets
Super Bowl tickets can be found on most major ticket-purchasing platforms. These include Ticketmaster, StubHub, SeatGeek, and VividSeats. Ticket prices will vary from platform to platform, especially because fees differ, and many of the tickets posted are re-sale from individual original buyers.
Why Are Super Bowl Tickets So Expensive?
The basic answer: supply and demand. While State Farm Stadium, the home of Super Bowl 57, can seat over 63,000 fans, there are many, many more that would love the opportunity to see the game in person and experience everything that Super Bowl weekend has to offer.
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Given the nature of the game today, which involves far more than just the three hours of football entertainment (think halftime show, live performances in the area, parties, etc.), fans are willing to dole out a pretty penny (or thousands) for an opportunity to go to the Super Bowl. Prices will rise as high as people are willing to pay.