Toronto Tourism Desperate To Sell Bills Tickets
As mentioned in today's Morning Brew, the prospects for a packed house for tomorrow's Bills/Steelers exhibition game aren't looking too good. In an effort to save face and boost sales, Toronto Tourism has street teams out in the Financial District this week trying to convince un-enthused Torontonians to care.
In a sign of desperation, they're handing out flyers promoting half price 200 level tickets - which can now be had for the amazingly affordable price of $184. That'll give you the privilege to watch second stringers and future training camp cuts play uninspired football in a meaningless pre-season game next to what will surely be a quiet crowd munching on overpriced beer and fast food.
Sounds like fun.
Comments (25)
rather than watching the NFL and CFL, people should come to BMO Field and see real football... Toronto FC!
RBeezy 
on August 13, 2008 9:54 AM
no thanks. Uncle Ted's maniacal laugh at the Bills press conference - the laugh of the rich, as I call it - convinced me that he is only in this for the money.
the announced ticket prices cemented it for me.
Toronto may have a lot of Bills fans but the majority of them aren't shelling out big bucks for a little show.
RBeezy on August 13, 2008 9:58 AM
TFC? no thanks, unless I need to research either mediocre soccer teams or how to properly throw a roll of toilet paper.
I'm curious what these seats actually cost or what attendance numbers at full price were needed to break even. Did the Bills gouge Toronto up front, is Toronto Tourism/Rogers gouging the people, or both?
@Rbeezy
Mwahahahahahaaaaa...ahhaaaa...hahaaaaahahaaaa. My laugh of the rich is coming along. I'm working with a vocal coach, strengthening the "aaaaaaaah".
I am pleasantly surprised by Torontonians this time. I thought every crap show, or bad team got sold-out.
Jerrold, put it this way: every year, I buy a pass to a Bills game at Ralph Wilson stadium (through the Bills themselves and not some third party vendor) that includes transportation, game tickets, and all-you-can-drink/eat tailgate party access for $100 a person.
There is no way the costs for bringing the team to Toronto makes it necessary for ticket prices to jump that high. It's gouging, plain and simple.
I may be the biggest NFL fan (J!E!T!S!) I know -- I don't do anything on Sundays but watch every game I can during the season, and own a ridiculous amount of useless NFL merchandise -- but even I'm not interested in shelling out a week's pay to watch a pre-season game.
Lower Level sideline Bills tickets for a home game in Buffalo are $77. Upper level go for $38.
If I really wanted to see a game it is FAR cheaper to go to Buffalo. Even though I live 5 mins from the SKYDOME.
It's embarrassing to see Tourism Toronto involved in promoting Toronto as being big league enough to host an NFL exhibition game. Whatever happened to, I don't know, promoting Toronto's attractions and neighbourhoods?
Won't be on their website -- they offer them to special groups (corporate, charity, etc) and I happen to know someone who is part of one such group. If you drop me an email (there's a contact form on my website linked below) I can probably get you in touch with someone.
If the point of this Bills in Toronto exercise is to prove to the NFL that Toronto football fans are rabid enough to support an NFL team (be that a relocated Bills club or an expansion franchise), then overcharging for seats in a stadium that miserably fails any football suitability test is clearly not the way to go about this.
If, on the other hand, the point is to half-fill the SkyDome with suckers who are willing to overpay for NFL tickets, on days when the Blue Jays aren't in town to half-fill the stadium, then kudos to those running the show...
That same amount ($184) could buy a lot of NFL HD
programming.
Guess which one lasts longer and is better value for
money?
Then, there's the business of disagreeable persons
sitting around you in the stadium. We could all
do without that.
Just like the cinema nowadays, it's just better to
stay in and enjoy it all in HD on a large screen.
RBeezy on August 13, 2008 11:51 AM
Dave, the laugh of the rich is more of a cackle, followed by some snickering and then finished off by a lackey hired specifically for his/her "finishing off my laugh" ability.
This "rich" stuff is not easy... I think I'm better suited for the Evil League of Evil where my maniacal laugh will be better appreciated. Like Bad Horse's whinny... His terrible death whinny.
The cheapest seat at the Rogers Centre are $55 (pdf).
"Among the major sports, the NFL has the highest average ticket price of $50.02"
What ever it is that allows Americans to have such low prices I want them to export it to us, quickly.
Here's another great example movie prices in the states, $6.88. I barely recall when I paid $6.88 to see a film. Yet that's the price south of the border.
For the Bills it doesn't matter they could give the tickets away I won't go. But for movies, I sure as hell stay away from a bunch of them because the price isn't fair.
A HUGE part of the fun of a Bills game is goin' ta Buffalo. These organizers, blinded by the dollar signs dancing in front of their eyes, don't understand that.
$184 per ticket.
It happens to be the price for 4 people to go, eat at and park at an Argo game, get good seats, and get better entertainment then what they'll be getting tomorrow.
I don't know what's more pathetic about this exercise. That Rogers is getting shown for the corporate buffoons they are, or the further delving into irrelevance Citytv is doing in being the resident prostitute for this venture.
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