Why NFL Tickets Should Cost Much Less

A Ravens Fans Perspective On How To Make The NFL Better For Fans

The National Football League is too big to fail. This country loves football and it has made the NFL a multi-billion dollar business. For all the concern about concussions, the NFL has enough money to stay ahead of any firestorms in the media or in the courts. Despite the continuous gaffes by it’s commissioner, Roger Goodell, the NFL is thriving like never before.

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Think about how much has gone wrong for the NFL. First there was Spy-Gate. Now there is Deflate-Gate with the four time Super Bowl Champion New England Patriots. Bounty-Gate was pretty bad. Yes, we have a lot of controversial scandals in the NFL, and they all have the word “Gate” connected to them. Ray Rice being caught on video hitting his fiance did not help the NFL image. Add on Gregg Hardy and too many other stories and the NFL looks like a playground for domestic violence offenders.

The NFL needs to be branded differently. John McCarty of Arrow Head Addict, wrote a very compelling piece about the NFL’s situation. McCarty claimed that the NFL is about to be passed by the other popular sports in the United States. While I don’t see the destruction or dismantling on the league’s popularity, I do agree with one point McCarty rose. McCarty so eloquently told us that the NFL needs to reconnect with its fans. The idea here is that the NFL has become a cold and distant league that does not prioritize the fans. This is a point I completely agree with.

There is nothing like a buzzing M&T Bank Stadium. There really isn’t. When the Ravens give their fans even a fraction of a reason, the purple sea literally makes the stadium shake. There is almost a College Football like passion that exudes out of the Ravens crowd, on a beautiful Baltimore Sunday. It is an experience that is priceless to me, but it kills my wallet.

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The NFL has the audacity of making the home experience awesome while expecting fans to pitch over multiple pay-checks to go to a game or two. Then when you buy these overpriced tickets online there is a service charge. Just for them to email you the tickets, it costs like $50. It is absurd. Many people will either never know the thrill of actually being at the game, or they will simply choose to spend their money more wisely. The NFL has made their game so accessible to the casual fan. In return the die hard fans are less likely to make the mecca to their team’s stadium.

At home, you can plug into so many different ways to consume football. You can get every game on your TV with NFL Sunday Ticket (Its worth it). You can follow stats and your fantasy football players on all your devices. You can kick back in a recliner and drink a beer (for much less than $8 dollars a can). Many fans don’t even see the point of going to a game. The number of fans who feel this way is likely to rise as technology makes it easier to consume football.

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When you go to a game, you get a completely different experience. You can have a much more intellectual interaction with the game. You see the entire field. Instead of being glued to a camera angle that only follows the football, you can follow all of the action. You interact with fellow fans, and feel connected to something bigger than yourself. Most of all, you make a day out of it. You have fun. You savor the moment in a life that goes by too fast.

I was just 10 years old, when I went to my first game. The Ravens were battling the Chicago Bears in 2001. It was the season opener and I still had the lingering joy of seeing my team win it all months ago. I did not really know what to expect.

The day was emotionally perfect. My Dad and I enjoyed a perfect day at the stadium. I was hooked. I felt that it was so unfair that I had so much passion for the Ravens, yet I could not go to every game. My parents gave me a great childhood and had great jobs. They still could not afford to take me to every game, even if they wanted to.

I’ve always gone to a game or two per season. A few years I have made it to the stadium five times. When I had my own money, Ravens tickets became my primary investment. Each time I go to the game, I feel the same enthusiasm. I feel like a ten-year old boy at awe with the scene around him. I feel joy and euphoria dancing in my heart. Every little boy should get a chance to feel that, because it will stick with them for a lifetime.

Lowering ticket prices would give more fans that feeling of connection with the game. It would introduce more people to the game. It would build loyalty and appreciation in your fan base. Lowering ticket prices would allow more people to be more invested emotionally in the NFL.

The NFL is a money making machine, making their ticket prices reasonable would not kill them. The good will the fans would feel, would perhaps strengthen the league financially. Maybe its better than than gauging the pockets of fans each time they want to connect to their favorite sport.

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The NFL has to be re-branded. They have to connect with a country that is strained from talk of deflated footballs and battered women. The NFL is masterful at creating bad press for themselves. What could turn that around better than doing something for there fans. Instead of a warm video on the big screen thanking the fans for being there; how about making football a family affordable form of live entertainment.