Ticket supply demand in LA

[mstrat]

I have lived in LA for 7 years now. Going to Texas bowl games here has never worked out for me due to work commitments, save '06. None of my bosses would let me take time off, save that year.

In '06 I had tickets reserved in my name through one media outlet. 2 weeks before the game, I discover the tickets were "reallocated".

I wasn't going to give up. One of my best friends had 2 tickets via ABC/ESPN reserved. We head to the ESPN offices the day of the game to pick them up (tickets had just arrived from Bristol that day).

At their offices I receive a profuse apology as they tell us that someone swiped the tickets and passed them on to some celeb. We were offered Lakers tickets and I think World Series tickets too. Not what we wanted to hear. That late in the day (2 hours to kickoff) and LA traffic being what it is, we opted to watch it at the local UT alum game-watching locale.

This year, I will tailgate at the Rose Bowl with or without a ticket. I'm not going to deal with tickets getting pulled from underneath me once more and being disappointed. I love my Longhorns, but I refuse to pay what "silly" money in times like these.

So that's my background/views on this before I throw this thought out:

For anyone who is planning to buy tickets above face value once in LA, you WILL end up paying more this year than in '06. SC fans sold off their tickets by the boatload to Texas fans. It was a moneymaker to them. They didn't care about the game. That's why the stadium had such a huge Longhorn contingency.

Bama fans are not SC fans. They value their tickets. They are in the buying, not selling mode. So when tickets held by a 3rd party go on sale, you're not bidding against Longhorns mainly like in '06 - you're bidding against Bama. They will auction off their trailer home/s to pay for the right to go to the game.

 

[4Horns]

I respectfully disagree. I probably won't go out to LA without a ticket, but it's not becasue I don't think the tickets will be more expensive than in '06. I expect them to be less and more available the day of the game. You are under-selling the effect of a local market. The '06 Rose Bowl was the most anticipated college football game in more than a decade. It was the place to be for SC fans and celebs.

This year's game does not have that kind of buzz. It is a fantastic match up with two traditional powers, but it is more confined to the two fan bases, both of which have to travel significant distances.

I personaly don't want to hassle with buying tickets in LA, even though I could probably save some money IMO. I get in to LAX about 24 hours before kickoff. I prefer to spend my time drinking, sleeping, and girl watching.

I do, however, think most fans will follow your advice and buy tickets before arriving. This will have the opposite effect that you're describing. No local market combined with already-ticketed fans is not the recipe for a broker bonanza. The walk up dollars (and they were significant) provided by the local market in '06, created an upward cost spiral that even the brokers did not expect.

My two cents.