reported<\/a> by SI’s Brian Straus. If the price of a seat had risen in line with inflation the average cost today would be roughly $ 46. But even for the doomed 2018 cycle the average price had already rocketed to $ 97. And ultra-expensive \u201cpremium\u201d seating areas are increasingly clogging stadiums like Lamborghinis at the valet stand of a five-star hotel.<\/p>\nThe USMNT’s next match, Sunday’s friendly against Uruguay at Children’s Mercy Park in Kansas City, is not far off a sellout, though the place only holds 18,500. A wide selection of seats is still available at Q2 Stadium in Austin for the Concacaf Nations League game against Grenada on 10 June, though it’s the last US home match before the tournament in Qatar. Seats cost upwards of $ 45 on Ticketmaster as of Thursday afternoon, with those near the dugout for the clash with opponents ranked 170th in the world priced between $ 120 and $ 590.<\/p>\n
Better value was on offer when Italy met Argentina at Wembley Stadium on Wednesday in a clash between the European and South American champions. Standard tickets were \u00a3 25-55 ($ 31- $ 69), with a top-priced club-level seat selling for \u00a3 99 ($ \u200b\u200b125). The Finalissima was an 87,112 sellout.<\/p>\n
“I understand what [Pulisic] is saying but I think putting the burden on the fans is misplaced, \u201dsays Zach Blandford, secretary of the Cincinnati chapter of the American Outlaws supporters’ group. He paid $ 75 for his spot behind the goal and felt that the atmosphere was exuberant.<\/p>\n
Berhalter’s side are frequent visitors to Ohio. They met Mexico in Cincinnati (a sellout) last November, while there were two games recently in Columbus, about a hundred miles away. The USWNT edged Paraguay 8-0 in a friendly at TQL last September in front of 22,515.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don’t think it’s that people aren’t excited to see the team anymore. Everyone I talk to here is still so excited every time the team comes in, \u201dBlandford says. \u201cA lot of people I know that are part of our supporters’ group that show up to our watch parties were priced out of the game. I think that’s a shame. I think that trying to get every penny out of these friendlies and then having comments like this about the fans, it’s tough, I don’t think it’s fair. I think that we have great fans here. “<\/p>\n
With Berhalter shaping a young, dynamic and improving side as the US return to the world stage for the first time since 2014, every empty seat is a missed opportunity to begin or cement a relationship.<\/p>\n
“On the way to the game I was riding in a Lyft and I was taking to my driver who’s a big soccer fan and never been able to go to the stadium and I was able to get him a free ticket through AO Cincy,” Blandford says. \u201cI look down the row and he’s drumming at half time with the rest of us in the stands and that’s a super-cool thing, right? That’s what happens when you make these games accessible to people who can’t always go, is you create new fans, you create new memories. “<\/p>\n<\/div>\n