Non- Sellouts in Larger Markets

Fenway

HF Bookie and Bruins Historian
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Sep 26, 2007
68,589
98,268
Cambridge, MA
Capacity is 17,565. ESPN listed attendance is 17,193. Obviously not a huge deal. Bit concerning though that there's no longer sellouts in LA, NY, Philly and now Boston. Bruins had over 440 straight sellouts.

Is this the new trend? Just cheaper to watch all sports at home? Coincidence?

TD Garden capacity during renovations is 17,193 It will increase later in November

447: Consecutive Bruins games (regular season and playoffs) currently sold out at TD Garden … Their last non-sellout game was on Dec. 2, 2009 when a Wednesday game vs. TB drew 16,553.
 
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Hockeyholic

Registered User
Apr 20, 2017
16,351
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Condo My Dad Bought Me
TD Garden capacity during renovations is 17,193 It will increase later in November

447: Consecutive Bruins games (regular season and playoffs) currently sold out at TD Garden … Their last non-sellout game was on Dec. 2, 2009 when a Wednesday game vs. TB drew 16,553.

My apologies. I will edit the thread title to reflect said oyher teams.
 

supsens

Registered User
Oct 6, 2013
6,577
2,000
Obviously not a huge deal. Bit concerning though that there's no longer sellouts in LA, NY, Philly and now Montreal.

Is this the new trend? Just cheaper to watch all sports at home? Coincidence?

When talking about teams having a slow start to the season almost everyone says, “who cares it doesn’t mean anything it’s still early”
So you would expect people to not care about games at this time of year. Empty seats at the end of the year is an issue
 

tony d

Registered User
Jun 23, 2007
76,590
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Prices for games are out of whack. We went to an Oilers game last yr. over Christmas. Tickets plus concessions/merchandise came to over $200. $12 for a can of beer. Stay at home sure and watch the game on TV, save yourself some money in the process.
 
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NCRanger

Bettman's Enemy
Feb 4, 2007
5,426
2,103
Charlotte, NC
The issue nobody wants to talk about is ticket/concession/parking prices.

As supposedly "wonderful" the economy is, there really hasn't been any real wage/salary growth in a decade. Yet, ticket prices have skyrocketed.

Seems like teams would rather keep prices high and play to 85% capacity instead of reducing prices to play to 100% capacity and create actual demand.
 

cheswick

Non-registered User
Mar 17, 2010
6,764
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Obviously not a huge deal. Bit concerning though that there's no longer sellouts in LA, NY, Philly and now Montreal.

Is this the new trend? Just cheaper to watch all sports at home? Coincidence?

I think it's likely to do with better ticketing systems and dynamic pricing. Newer technology is allowing venues to really maximize how much they can sell tickets for, rather than worrying about selling out. Taylor Swifts most recent stadium tour is an example of this. It broke records for revenue but routinely didn't sell out. The prior one sold out in minutes but left a tonne of money on the table which scalpers then took advantage of.

I think the new reality is pricier tickets with less sell outs. Making every dollar available to the venue and cutting scalpers out
 

qwerty

Registered User
Feb 4, 2007
3,001
994
Calgary
Personally, I don't think it's the prices. I think some people look at the price as the reason why they might not be interested, but hockey on average has the wealthiest fan base in all of major pro sports. So of any league, the NHL should be theoretically the safest to price elasticity.

I just think it's the world we're living in. Competition for your entertainment dollar is fiercer than ever before. Generations growing up seem less and less interested in traditional sports but instead are gravitating towards e-sports.

You've got to contend with the Netflix generation where sitting on your couch, watching TV and food delivery can be done with virtually zero effort whereas in contrast, paying hundreds of dollars to get up, get ready, drive through traffic, line up for security, food and beer, then having to line up to exit, drive through the same traffic to get home and then unwind. I mean, that's a lot of effort to watch the exact same game you could at home while not having nearly the same type of choices and options.

Personally, I could see this trend continuing for all traditional sports. I don't think anyone is immune.
 

NCRanger

Bettman's Enemy
Feb 4, 2007
5,426
2,103
Charlotte, NC
Personally, I don't think it's the prices. I think some people look at the price as the reason why they might not be interested, but hockey on average has the wealthiest fan base in all of major pro sports. So of any league, the NHL should be theoretically the safest to price elasticity.

I just think it's the world we're living in. Competition for your entertainment dollar is fiercer than ever before. Generations growing up seem less and less interested in traditional sports but instead are gravitating towards e-sports.

You've got to contend with the Netflix generation where sitting on your couch, watching TV and food delivery can be done with virtually zero effort whereas in contrast, paying hundreds of dollars to get up, get ready, drive through traffic, line up for security, food and beer, then having to line up to exit, drive through the same traffic to get home and then unwind. I mean, that's a lot of effort to watch the exact same game you could at home while not having nearly the same type of choices and options.

Personally, I could see this trend continuing for all traditional sports. I don't think anyone is immune.

Define wealthy. Most classify it as a $100k a year salary.

Let's break that down. That's a little less than $2000/wk, before taxes and deductions. Let's say $1500 after taxes.

Taking a family to a game in most cities for decent seats - $100 each. Add in concessions and parking/public transit, and maybe having to take an hour or two off, you're looking $400-500 for ONE GAME! A THIRD of weekly income for someone considered wealthy! That's a ton of discretionary spending. Don't tell us that ticket/concession/parking prices are not an issue.

My personal opinion is, the "next generation (Gen Z)" is going to enjoy all the technological benefits society has, BUT, they are also going to be throwbacks in the fact that they are going to enjoy going to games, concerts, social events, etc., much more so than the millennial generation did/does.
 

FourRings

Registered User
Mar 26, 2013
4,775
2,303
New York City
Define wealthy. Most classify it as a $100k a year salary.

Let's break that down. That's a little less than $2000/wk, before taxes and deductions. Let's say $1500 after taxes.

Taking a family to a game in most cities for decent seats - $100 each. Add in concessions and parking/public transit, and maybe having to take an hour or two off, you're looking $400-500 for ONE GAME! A THIRD of weekly income for someone considered wealthy! That's a ton of discretionary spending. Don't tell us that ticket/concession/parking prices are not an issue.

My personal opinion is, the "next generation (Gen Z)" is going to enjoy all the technological benefits society has, BUT, they are also going to be throwbacks in the fact that they are going to enjoy going to games, concerts, social events, etc., much more so than the millennial generation did/does.
I'm a millenial (an older one, but still) and my friends and I go to games and concerts and absolutely love doing so, but we can't do it as often as we'd like because with that extra disposable income comes lots of late nights at the office and the scarce time we have on the weekends, we're f***ing tired. So while I agree it's not all in the prices, it just has to do with the economic landscape as a whole.

As for the Gen Z comment, I don't agree with that. I think attendance will fall even further because a lot of Gen Z'ers aren't fans of teams, but rather they're fans of individual players and will only go when those players are in town.
 

Samsquanch

Raging Bull Squatch
Nov 28, 2008
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Sudbury
I'm a millenial (an older one, but still) and my friends and I go to games and concerts and absolutely love doing so, but we can't do it as often as we'd like because with that extra disposable income comes lots of late nights at the office and the scarce time we have on the weekends, we're ****ing tired. So while I agree it's not all in the prices, it just has to do with the economic landscape as a whole.

As for the Gen Z comment, I don't agree with that. I think attendance will fall even further because a lot of Gen Z'ers aren't fans of teams, but rather they're fans of individual players and will only go when those players are in town.

Agree with the Gen Z'ers. I can see sporting attendance numbers continue to get worse and worse.

From what I can tell, they arent nearly as big of sports fans as the previous generations were. And now their is a new player on the sports/entertainment block for the traditional sports to compete for attention with - and its the true love of most of the Gen Z'ers, and that is E-sports.

In 50 years E-sports will be as big (quite possibly even bigger) than any of the traditional major sports of today, and while there will always be live spectators, thats more for the complete die hards as Live is not the best way to enjoy watching the actual games in Esports. The majority will be content to watch from their homes.
 

Pilky01

Registered User
Jan 30, 2012
9,867
2,319
GTA
Millenials are killing the luxury box industry!

For real though, NHL games in my home market are completely beyond my means. It is literally $100 just to get in the door for the cheapest seats and thats just not a cost I am willing to pay.

I haven't paid for an NHL ticket in roughly a decade. I only go to CHL and AHL games now.
 
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NCRanger

Bettman's Enemy
Feb 4, 2007
5,426
2,103
Charlotte, NC
I'm a millenial (an older one, but still) and my friends and I go to games and concerts and absolutely love doing so, but we can't do it as often as we'd like because with that extra disposable income comes lots of late nights at the office and the scarce time we have on the weekends, we're ****ing tired. So while I agree it's not all in the prices, it just has to do with the economic landscape as a whole.

As for the Gen Z comment, I don't agree with that. I think attendance will fall even further because a lot of Gen Z'ers aren't fans of teams, but rather they're fans of individual players and will only go when those players are in town.

Thinking about it, my daughter is 11, in the back end of Gen Z. She likes some baseball players, not necessarily teams. She'll come in to watch Aaron Judge bat, or Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo, but really doesn't follow the sport. As for pro football, she vehemently dislikes the hometown Panthers, but "loves" Christian McCaffery.

She does follow the Rangers and Liverpool FC pretty closely though, as well as NC State sports.

Doesn't care at all about the NBA, save for Stephen and Seth Curry, because she goes to the same school they did in Charlotte, even though she plays basketball.

That said, she absolutely enjoys going to games with me and mom, especially smaller college games, where the crowds are small and she can hear the coaches/players.

I do know that some of the boys in her class follow the Panthers and Patriots religiously. There's at least one die hard Hurricanes fan.
 

HugoSimon

Registered User
Jan 25, 2013
959
263
Prices for games are out of whack. We went to an Oilers game last yr. over Christmas. Tickets plus concessions/merchandise came to over $200. $12 for a can of beer. Stay at home sure and watch the game on TV, save yourself some money in the process.
What do you expect? I pay 30 bucks to see the London Knigjts. I'd be pretty pissed if a NHL game was less than 60-70 bucks.

Concessions are for people with poor self control and money management this doesn't matter if you're at the cineplex, a rock concert whatever.
 

David Dennison

I'm a tariff, man.
Jul 5, 2007
5,940
1,444
Grenyarnia
I think
1)Price
2)Everyone has a big HDTV to watch the game on at home.
3) Winning cures a lot. Blues had a lot of empty seats early last season, now tickets are some of the highest prices in hockey. Kings, Rangers, etc aren't very good this year.
 

HugoSimon

Registered User
Jan 25, 2013
959
263
Millenials are killing the luxury box industry!

For real though, NHL games in my home market are completely beyond my means. It is literally $100 just to get in the door for the cheapest seats and thats just not a cost I am willing to pay.

I haven't paid for an NHL ticket in roughly a decade. I only go to CHL and AHL games now.
So how many CHL games would you skip to see one NHL game?
 

Dirty Old Man

Anti-chatter Engine
Sponsor
Jan 29, 2008
7,888
5,915
Ostrich City
I think e-sports will end up most analagous to NASCAR...well, auto racing in general really... in the US. Really popular for 10-20 years, and it will always have its share of fans, then start to taper off when they realize they're in their 40s, and sitting in a stadium watching kids play video games on a big screen isn't so thrilling anymore (and as their favorites retire/get involved in other things).
 
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Cacciaguida

Registered User
Jan 11, 2010
1,620
327
Ottawa
What do you expect? I pay 30 bucks to see the London Knigjts. I'd be pretty pissed if a NHL game was less than 60-70 bucks.

Concessions are for people with poor self control and money management this doesn't matter if you're at the cineplex, a rock concert whatever.
Why would you be upset over affordable NHL ticket prices?!?!?!?
 
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qwerty

Registered User
Feb 4, 2007
3,001
994
Calgary
Define wealthy. Most classify it as a $100k a year salary.

Let's break that down. That's a little less than $2000/wk, before taxes and deductions. Let's say $1500 after taxes.

Taking a family to a game in most cities for decent seats - $100 each. Add in concessions and parking/public transit, and maybe having to take an hour or two off, you're looking $400-500 for ONE GAME! A THIRD of weekly income for someone considered wealthy! That's a ton of discretionary spending. Don't tell us that ticket/concession/parking prices are not an issue.

My personal opinion is, the "next generation (Gen Z)" is going to enjoy all the technological benefits society has, BUT, they are also going to be throwbacks in the fact that they are going to enjoy going to games, concerts, social events, etc., much more so than the millennial generation did/does.
Based on the statistics I saw which was a review of the demographics of all professional sport leagues including even college, the NHL was by far the wealthiest. Money would not be an issue especially compared to the NBA which has comparable attendance with fans who earn considerably less pm average.

I think the inconvenience factor is the biggest hurdle to go along with the vast improvement of the at home experience. For decades now, the world has improved the at home experience with HD television, no blackouts, vastly superior food and delivery options, on demand TV apps, unparalleled video games and etc etc etc. In that same time frame, what has pro sport leagues done to improve their in house experience? I'd argue it's very much the same but with higher ticket prices attached. It's an uphill climb at this point.

Lastly, I would disagree that the Gen Z crowd will watch live sports more so than the previous generation. I'm personally a millennial myself who happens to be around a lot of the Gen Z crowd. A lot of these guys could care less about traditional sports.
They recognize faces and stars they've heard and have seen in their social media feeds. But these people I know don't even own cable or subscribe to sports in any way. They don't play it either so really, how do they become interested into the sport itself?

I tend to find their attention spans are short as well, so a 3 hour game likely isn't going to be entertainment to them. However, I do agree with you that I think they'll prefer event based shared experiences in social settings. Annual or once in a blue moon type of things, not 80 or 160 games a season type sports. That's not the future IMO.
 

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