Super Bowl 2012 Ticket Prices Drop 20 Percent; NY/NJ Buyers Dominate Market

Super Bowl 2012 tickets have dropped 20 percent since last Monday but are still selling for more than $2,000, according to ticket seller StubHub.

Ticket prices typically drop as it gets closer to the actual Super Bowl as buyers and sellers get more realistic about their plans, says StubHub spokesperson Joellen Ferrer.

The market has lessened as it becomes more realistic fans looking at tickets, she said. It's similar to what we saw last year with quite bit of movement in the days leading into the Super Bowl.

On Jan. 23rd the cheapest ticket option on StubHub went for $2,500, but by Monday afternoon the cheapest option had dropped to $2,090. The average ticket price has dropped to $4,982 from $4,311, according to TiqIQ, a service that tracks the listings of multiple ticket sellers. Those prices could continue to fall in the next few days, but should plateau on either Wednesday or Thursday.

Super Bowl ticket prices are dropping, but more and more fans from New York and New Jersey and purchasing tickets. The NY/NJ market now makes up 34 percent of StubHub's Super Bowl buyers, according to Ferrer, while New England states make up only 14 percent.

There was some fear that a rematch of Super Bowl XLII could cause ticket prices to stagnate, but Ferrer says that Indianapolis' closer proximity to the two cities has actually helped create interest.

There is a bit more new appeal to some of the Giants fans, Ferrer said. We are seeing more traveling fans from the two home states than we did from the same matchup in 2008.

There are approximately 50 percent more traveling fans from those areas going to Indianapolis than fans that went to Glendale, Ariz. in 2008. In 2008 the buyer breakdown was: 15 percent from California; 12 percent each from Arizona and Massachusetts; and 10 percent each from New York and New Jersey.

Fans shouldn't expect to pay much less than $2,000 for any ticket at the Lucas Oil Stadium -- the tickets have a face value of $800-$1,200 -- but Ferrer noted that those that purchase through StubHub will at least get access to a free tailgate.

StubHub is hosting a free gameday tailgate of food and drinks for all customers that bought tickets through the service. Ferrer said the company is expecting 4,000 to 5,000 fans at the tailgate only a few blocks away from the stadium.

We realize a lot of people are traveling and might not have a pregame tailgate to go to or have a set plan.