The explosion of Lionel Messi onto the Major Soccer League can be seen directly through the wallet of their growing support base.
Some say explosion, some say exploitation, with games featuring Messi proving wildly popular for resale purposes.
When Messi is out injured re-sold ticket prices drop considerably.
It is almost unfathomable to explain how one player can create such wild price fluctuations.
The club just released their 2023/24 ticket pricing and it’s nearly doubled.
Before the former Ballon D’ Or winner even kicked a ball in the US, he drove up Inter Miami’s ticket prices by 500%.
But the vagaries of putting all of your eggs in one basket is playing out, with Messi sidelined by a ‘mystery’ injury, one that saw him sit out Wednesday night’s US Open Cup final.
The price for the match tickets dropped alarmingly, causing mild panic, and they were beaten 2-1 by the Houston Dynamo to boot.
SeatGeek is a resale platform that has shown how the trend of a Messi-team versus a Messi-less team fares in the marketplace. The cheapest pairs of tickets on Wednesday were at $156, and with Messi missing Friday’s training ahead of their match against NYCFC the ticket price for one fell to $34.
This is insanity and is akin to trading on the stock market.
Ahead of next season’s steep hike, Inter Miami fans (the actual fans) will be in for a rude awakening.
The cheapest season ticket in 2023 was $485, equating to $28.50 per match, and the new prices indicate the same ticket will be sold for $884, or $52 per game.
In 2022 The average NFL season tickets went anywhere from $300 to $4500 for eight home games. The average NFL ticket is $112.
The average cost of an NBA match is $94.
There are various categories for Inter Miami soccer fans, with the premium packages going for $45,900 per season.
Inter were regarded as the worst supported team in the ‘pre-Messisoic’ era, but with the help of the World Cup winner and one of the greatest soccer players to grace the game, MLS tickets are moving more in line with other major US sports events.
