LAS VEGAS (KSNV) — As thousands descend upon the Las Vegas valley for WrestleMania 42, News 3 found out the reasons why there’s a dip in ticket sales compared to last year’s historic event at Allegiant Stadium.
World Wrestling Entertainment may have one of the most loyal fan bases in all sports, but recently, fans have been voicing their displeasure with the surge in price to attend the organization’s biggest event.
Recently, the WWE held a last minute 25% discount promotion to drive ticket sales. This follows a reported dip in sales compared to last year.
Economic experts believe the dip is in response to the rise in prices to attend WrestleMania.
“Since the merger of the WWE and UFC into TKO, there’s been a deliberate strategy to raise the ticket prices,” said Brandon Thurston with Wrestlenomics.com, a site that tracks the sports economic activity like ticket sales and attendance.
Thurston said the average sold price of a ticket for WrestleMania has jumped from just under $200 a few years ago to last year’s average of more than $600. He shared this graph that highlights the stark increase over the last few years.
He adds that this year’s event is still down 9,000 tickets sold compared to last year.
Reasons include the same location, no John Cena retirement, and less positivity about the product.
“A lot of fans were vocal online and felt they were being gauged,” said Thurston. “I think they(WWE) have reached a ceiling about what they can get away with charging.”
At last check, ringside tickets for Saturday’s event are going for $16,000, and nosebleeds were about $200.
