July 24, 2008

From TheKCGuy

It's Chiefs single game ticket sales day today. I have a few (misguided and myopic) thoughts on that.

This is probably a bigger day out there today than it has in the past. That's because I'm suspecting that season ticket sales are down. I know of two season ticket holders that have given up their tickets this year. One of them had held their tickets for longer than I've been alive. The increased price and the poor performance of the team seem to be the reasons.

I don't mean to be complaining about the high prices that the Chiefs charge. I hear a lot of that, and I think it's unfounded. They sell out all of their games. I think last year was a close one for one game, and it almost was aired locally because it wasn't a sell out. But, at the last minute the rest of the seats were scooped up and the stands were filled with red. They're completely right to raise prices. They're selling out their inventory. Raising prices is the natural move.

There is an argument, though, that they receive public funding through support for their stadium, so they should keep prices down. I think that's a hollow argument, too. The local residents vote to give them more money and don't get agreements to keep ticket prices down in writing. That's foolish if you're expecting ticket prices to stay low. Furthermore, since we obviously want to better facilities that we keep voting for, detractors shouldn't want to hamstring the Chiefs budget by forcing them to keep prices down. If you vote to give them more money, you should be in favor of higher ticket prices, not against them.

I'm always stunned by the high prices of the tickets, but then I recall that I'm not just paying for one morning of play. I'm paying to see the outcome of nearly a whole year of work for far more people than just the players. Since they only play about 8 games here, and couple of preseason games each year, of course the ticket prices are going to be high.

Today in Kansas City

• Rays vs. Royals at Kauffman Stadium. 7:10 PM. It's Girls Night at The K!