Report: Average ticket resale price higher than $3K for Super Bowl XLIX in Glendale

Super Bowl XLIX ticket resales are going fast, and the average price is reportedly rising as each ticket changes hands.

According to TIME Money, the lowest price for one Super Bowl entry on the ticket resale site StubHub was around $2,250 as of Thursday. StubHub said tickets for the big game are up 260 percent compared to last year, when the event was held at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

StubHub also reported that ticket resale prices for the game in Glendale, Arizona, have risen from $3,017 to $3,106 over the past week. TIME also pointed out that other sites like TiqIQ.com and SBTickets.com have ticket listings starting at $2,100 and going as high as about $6,000.

As recently as late December, get-in prices to the game were starting at around $1,600. Generally speaking, ticket demand and prices spike immediately after the AFC and NFC championship games end, and understandably so: Fans finally know which teams are playing in the Super Bowl, and if one is their team, they’ll blow the budget for the chance to witness what they hope will be world championship glory in person.

TIME notes Super Bowl ticket prices often drop in the last few days before the game. The “big spenders” usually grab their seats weeks in advance, and sellers often come down on their asking prices in the 11th hour — but a price plunge isn’t always guaranteed.

Super Bowl XLIX will take place Sunday, Feb. 1, at University of Phoenix Stadium. The Green Bay Packers, Seattle Seahawks, Indianapolis Colts and New England Patriots are still in the mix to participate in the big game.

Forbes says the Valley should expect fewer fans of the participating teams to travel to the area in the days leading up to the event. Although a sellout at the stadium should be anticipated — as every single Super Bowl has been at full capacity thus far — each of the four remaining locations are a great distance from Arizona, and it won’t be cheap to get to the area.

So when one factors in the cost of travel, lodging, meals, and tickets, the cost of two people attending this event for a long weekend could easily cost upwards of $7,500. That, for a lot of people, is a once-in-a-lifetime trip. Fans for three of the potential Super Bowl teams have made that trip in the last five years, while all four teams have appeared in a Super Bowl at least once in the last decade.

Forbes notes the Dallas Cowboys would have been the best bet to bring a hoard of fans to the Valley, but Jerry Jones’ team was knocked out of the playoffs last weekend by the Packers.

The only real hope for a large number of travelers to Arizona for the Super Bowl event is the Indianapolis Colts, a voracious fan base from a fairly large metropolitan area. Colts fans put out a reasonable showing in 2006, but they are the team with the lowest odds to win the Super Bowl at this point at 7-1. Andrew Luck and the Colts are burgeoning, but they are the least seasoned group of the remaining four teams, making it hard to believe they will end up in this year’s big game. Indianapolis will also play host to this year’s Final Four so some local sports fans might have already allocated their extra funds towards tickets for that event.

According to Forbes, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see this year’s game bring less revenue to its host region than Super Bowls in recent years.

Arizona Cardinals president Michael Bidwell said Friday on KTAR News 92.3 FM‘s Mac & Gaydos that the Super Bowl Host Committee’s budget has increased, largely due to fundraising, to $30 million — as compared the $15 million for the game held in Glendale in 2008.

Bidwill said he expects this year’s event to bring more revenue to the Valley than in 2008, citing events like the NFL Pro Bowl, which will be held in Glendale this year, as opposed to its usual location in Hawaii. He also said events like the five-day Super Bowl Central in downtown Phoenix and Jimmy Fallon recording “The Tonight Show” at the Orpheum Theatre will benefit the local economy, as well.

“So it’s an exciting time for the Valley (and) a huge economic impact and exposure for the community,” the Cardinals president said.