The Best Way to Find and Buy Tickets for Sporting Events

Going to a college or professional sporting event is one of the most entertaining things you can do. You can't appreciate the level of skill and talent the athletes display until you see it for yourself in person. However, with the ever increasing player salaries and greediness of the owners, it can be very difficult to find an affordable ticket. Teams are raising the ticket prices to maintain their stadium operations and it has become too expensive for the average middle class American like me to buy. However, don't give up on your dream to attend the games just yet. The Internet has revolutionized the way tickets are sold and bought, and it has simplified the process of finding a reasonably inexpensive ticket. This article discusses the different ways you can go about the search for tickets.

As I mentioned earlier, the Internet is a great tool for the buying and selling of tickets. I recommend creating an account and visiting the different auction sites such as eBay or Craig's List. Both of these auction sites have a forum for sports tickets and if you look hard enough then you could find a set of tickets that are cheaper than face value. First of all, ticket scalping does exist, but in some states ticket resellers are not allowed to sell them for more than face value. Don't get discouraged if the start of your search turns up a bunch of scalpers with prices so ridiculous you'd have to take out a second mortgage just to go to a Carolina Panthers game. There are many season tickets holders that are unable to attend a game so they put their tickets up for auction in hopes they can get a little more for them. It's these types of people you want to find on the auction sites.

Season ticket holders are, in my opinion, the best way to get tickets for under face value. Most season ticket holders are spoiled and don't go to every single game. However, most people don't know of someone that has season tickets and it makes the process difficult. Start by looking in the local newspaper in the Classifieds section. If this doesn't turn up any results, then keep searching. Some companies own blocks of season tickets for the professional or college teams in the area. It's quite often that these tickets go unused, so I recommend calling around your friends and family members to see if they work for a company that owns a block of tickets. The company my aunt works for has season tickets to my favorite college team and I've attended several basketball games with her. Also, another way that you can find season ticket holders is to log into an online fan forum for your favorite sports team. Often times, season ticket holders frequent these message boards to sell their tickets for face value or less because they know it's a sure thing. An auction site like eBay is great, but a season ticket holder isn't sure if it will ever sell. By visiting the sports site of that specific team they know they're going to find hundreds of fans ready to pounce on the ticket. For instance, I visit the Inside Carolina message board all of the time and there are constant inquiries about whether or not a fan is interested in buying tickets to a Tar Heel basketball game.

Another option you always have is to risk it and go to the venue and search for a ticket scalper. Ticket scalping is illegal in some states, while others just require the scalper to be a certain amount of feet from the stadium. The purpose of ticket scalping is to prey on the desperate sports fan that is willing to pay anything to get into the game. The scalper marks the price up over two to three times face value and they make great money. However, most scalpers purchase these tickets in large blocks for every game. They must sell large volumes in order to make money. Obviously, if a ticket goes unsold then this is money wasted. I recommend approaching a scalper at the last minute or perhaps just a few minutes after the game has started and you can get a discount on the ticket. After all, they'd rather make a little money than no money at all. Confront them with this notion if they're not willing to negotiate.

Probably the most obvious, but least reasonable method of getting sports tickets is to go through the team. However, be prepared to pay face value and tickets can get pretty expensive. Keep a close eye on the different promotions and discounts that the team offers throughout the season. If they're not having a good season and attendance is down, then they will lower the prices or offer a discount so they can fill the seats. Tickets for specific games may range in price dramatically, depending on the demand to see the game.

You don't have to break the bank by going to a game. If you play the system right, you'll be able to attend your favorite game and save a little money doing so. All it takes is research and patience, and before you know it you're eating a hot dog and drinking beer while you're watching your favorite team in front of you. Good luck!