Approximately $7bn in ticketing revenue could be lost in the NFL over the course of the 2020-21 season if fans are not allowed to attend any of the games due to the Covid-19 pandemic, according to ticket search engine and market analysis provider TicketiQ.
The estimate includes the values of primary and secondary ticket sales, Yahoo Sports reports. However, the projection carries the caveat that the league does not officially disclose its cut of tickets bought via official partners on the resale market.
On Monday, the Las Vegas Raiders confirmed that the team would play at its new Allegiant Stadium without fans for the upcoming campaign. Last month, the New York Giants and New York Jets confirmed that their 2020 home games would take place without fans at MetLife Stadium, while the Philadelphia Eagles have been told by regional health officials that it is unlikely spectators will be allowed at Lincoln Financial Field this fall.
TicketiQ estimated that the potential value of the lost ticketing revenue for Raiders games could reach nearly $571m, while the collective value of the ticketing markets for Giants, Jets and Eagles games is nearly $759m.
However, some NFL franchises have refused to give up hope yet of welcoming fans during the 2020-21 season, which is scheduled to begin on September 10.
The Green Bay Packers, the only publicly owned franchise in the NFL, has confirmed that fans will not be allowed to attend the teams first two home games of the new campaign.
However, with the Packers only set to host two contests in the first seven weeks of the season, the door has been left ajar to a possible opening of the turnstiles at Lambeau Field for the Week Eight clash with the Minnesota Vikings on November 1 – as long as the Covid-19 outlook improves.
“Given the extraordinary circumstances this year and the additional protocols in place, we determined it was best to take incremental steps to start the regular season,” Packers president and chief executive Mark Murphy said.
“These two games will allow us to focus our attention on safely conducting games inside the stadium with all necessary participants.
“We are hopeful that we will be able to host fans for games later in the season, should conditions allow. We will continue to consult with community healthcare and public health officials on the pandemic conditions in our area.”
King’s Theatre braced for panto setback
The King’s Theatre in Edinburgh, Scotland, is set to lose £2.3m as a result of the cancellation of the venue’s Christmas pantomime, according to Edinburgh Live.
The festive show accounts for about 30% of the annual income of the theatre’s operator, Capital Theatres. About 90,000 tickets for the performances are sold every year.
Earlier this week, Qdos, the UK’s largest pantomime production company, said that the rescheduling of its Sleeping Beauty pantomime at the King’s Theatre until November 2021 would have a “very significant” impact on the business.
Capital Theatres chief executive Fiona Gibson said: “It’s a real scale challenge for any organisation in performing arts to lose their festive shows because it is your mainstay for the rest of the year, that allows you to do all the other things you want to do.”
She added: “It’s going to be very difficult. We are assuming the earliest we are able to go back without socially distanced theatre is probably March time next year, and so you have literally lost a whole year of trading.
“There is no opportunity at all to make up that difference in this financial year.”
Image: Allegiant Stadium (Instagram)
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