Tickets to Super Bowl XLIII are going for as low as $1,500 according to websites like StubHub.com, and could fall even lower if supply continues to outpace the demand.
The average ticket price for the game is $2,500, the lowest figure in years.
In yet another sign of the weakening economy, diminished interest in America’s biggest sporting event has organizers in Tampa (and bookies in Vegas) scrambling to generate interest – and income.
It won’t be easy.
The game features two teams from smaller media markets – Phoenix and Pittsburgh – and comes in the middle of a punishing recession that has people less focused on entertainment and more on making ends meet.
Meanwhile, the Steelers as seven-point favorites has failed to create any buzz among gamblers. In fact, the Vegas “line” hasn’t moved all week, which means there’s simply not a lot of money being bet on the game from either side.
All signs point to a Super snoozefest, although the big indicator for advertisers won’t be attendence figures or betting trends, but how many people actually tune into the big telecast.
Surprisingly, NBC has been able to sell most of its 30-second spots for $3 million apiece, which is higher than last year’s $2.7 million price tag for a half-minute of airtime during the big game.
Super Bowl ad prices haven’t dropped since 2002, and have fallen only three times in the history of the game, in 1971, 2001 and 2002.
They also remained static in 1992, when the price held at $800,000 per 30-second spot from the previous year.
A record 97.4 million viewers watched last year’s game, the third straight year that the contest has reached the 90 million plateau.
