Scalpers and Ticket Brokers

[rmackman]

So as it turns out, both Ohio State University and University of Florida are alotting only around 1,000 tickets for students. You can fit probably around 80-90,000 fans in that new stadium in Glendale (don't know the exact amount) so that means that 88,000 tickets are going to high profile alumni, high paying boosters, corporations, advertisers, and other people who don't care about the game. Then all of a sudden you find on StubHub.com, Tickets4u.com, and other ticket buying sites regular seats available for the game. Of course they cost $1,500 for nosebleed seats and $3-7,000 for lower bowl seats. To top it off, these brokers advertise "I HAVE TEN SEATS AT XXXX PRICE!" Anything over face value the schools aren't getting. That I can tell you. So the question is how are the brokers and scalpers acquiring ten tickets? Is it the boosters who turn around and sell them? I mean if that's the case it's really messed up. If the school sees no more or less money, let the students and fans have at more tickets than 1,000. I don't really know how the process goes, but I always see that TONS of tickets are for sale at astronomical prices, and TONS of people can't go to the game. Tickets are $175 each face value. I'll pay three times that, but after that I just can't afford it when you factor in plane tickets and everything. I really want to go see the Gators in the National Championship, but the way they do the whole ticket process is just out of control. It's like the BCS. You have more money hungry people available than people who care about the game. I WANT TO GO!!!!

[hormone]

I could write a thousand pages on this stuff. It's a total racket. I LOVE to sit as close as possible whether it's a sporting event or a concert. A ticket broker can offer "a service" of hard to get tickets and sell them for thousands with a face of $50. As an individual, I can go something like 2% or whatever PA allows over face. Let me tell you how my ebay account got suspended...I couldn't go to a game one weekend so I put my tix on ebay. I went through the legal bs and said it can't go over a certain amount and when it reaches near that amount, I have to "end" the auction. I wasn't looking to cash in. I just wanted to recover some of my lost money. Well, I went to work and the auction went out of hand. I received a warning from ebay and they deleted the auction. I re-listed and explained what happened and the same thing happened. Ebay suspended my account and I told them it's out of my hand, etc. They told me "tough luck" and right below my auctions were sales with outragous prices, but the seller was so-and-so tickets, inc. and that's fine.

Ticketmaster is the devil who gets this going. They sell the prime seats (probably more than face) to the brokers who jack up the prices. Me and you, the fans, pay our hard-earned money to get close (or get in sometimes). It's total bs. I mean, how do radio stations and ticket brokers get 50 tickets in the front and you get online or whatever at exactly the right time and get offered the 80th row?

[dfwabel]

University fo Phoenix Stadium will hold approximately 73,000 for both games. Now, why should the University penalize alumni how have had a realtionship for years and have contributed time and dollars to the university's mission? My brother is a club seat holder at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium at Florida field, so I think he should get preference with his contribution to the University Atheletic Association (official name for the Athletic Department), along with his BBA and MBA from the university.

If you looked at ticket prices, take a look at hotels in the PHX area. I remember 4 years ago, that I locked in rooms in September for the OSU/Miami game.

Now, why is there a clamor for game tickets, but seen as a badge or honor or "free enterprise" to sit out for a PS3 and sell it on an auction site?

[FiddySicks]

Sorry my source fell through for ya Mackman. But look at the bright side, youll save yourself money flying all the way out to Zona to see your Gators get smashed

[NJTank]

Its the demand fans want the tickets they are willing to pay and its how it happens I occasionally use brokers to get Mets tickets. But I want to go to opening Day every year and I have no choice.