Revealed: Wisconsin is the most expensive state in the US for local fans to attend an NFL game
- Wisconsin has the highest NFL ticket cost-to-salary ratio, with a ticket to see the Green Bay Packers at home equating to 17.67% of the average weekly salary.
- The Dallas Cowboys come in second, with the cheapest ticket on average costing $204.11 – 17.36% of the average weekly salary in Texas.
- Pennsylvania takes third place, with The Philadelphia Eagles charging $226.56 – 17.10% of the average weekly wage in the state.
New research has revealed that the Green Bay Packers have the NFL’s most expensive ticket for the average local fan. This was closely followed by The Dallas Cowboys in second place and The Philadelphia Eagles in third.
The study by odds comparison experts Sidelines analyzed ticket price data from Seat Geek, taking the average cost of the cheapest available] ticket for each team’s home games for the 2023 season and comparing it against their home state’s salary data using info from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The data revealed that Wisconsin came out on top as the state where a ticket to watch the local NFL team costs the highest proportion of the average salary. The Green Bay Packers’ cheapest available ticket averaged out to $204.11 for its eight home games in the upcoming season. That equates to 17.67% of Wisconsin’s $1,155 weekly salary – the highest ratio out of all 32 teams in the league.
One of the two Texas NFL teams came in second place. The Dallas Cowboys’ average cheapest ticket is $245, which is the highest cost in the league, but it equates to 17.36% of the $1,411 average weekly wage in Texas, putting the Cowboys in a close second to the Green Bay Packers. Conversely, the Houston Texans are at the other end of the scale as the team whose tickets are the lowest percentage of their home state’s average weekly wage. The average cheapest ticket on Seat Geek for the Texans is $64.13, which is just 4.45% of the average weekly wage.
The Philadelphia Eagles in Pennsylvania was the third most expensive team for the average local fan to watch. The cheapest average ticket for the Eagles in 2023 is $226.56, 17.10% of Philadelphia’s $1,325 average weekly wage. The Eagles’ Pennsylvania rivals, The Pittsburgh Steelers are in fifth place with a cost of $209 per ticket, which is 15.77% of the average salary in the state.
Kansas City Chiefs placed fourth on the list with the lowest price available ticket, averaging $197.75. The cost to watch the reigning Super Bowl champions at home this season would equate to 17.09% of the $1,157 average weekly wage in Missouri.
In sixth place is the Las Vegas Raiders in Nevada, with the cheapest ticket taking a slight price decline. At $159.13, Raiders tickets equate to 13.81% of the average weekly salary in Nevada.
In seventh place is one of two NFL teams in Ohio, the Cincinnati Bengals. The cheapest ticket for the Bengals comes in at $142, which is 12.01% of the $1,182 average wage in Ohio. Compared to the average ticket price of the Cleveland Browns, which has an average ticket price of $101.38, this difference is just over $40, putting the Browns in 18th place.
In eighth place is The Miami Dolphins in Florida. The cheapest ticket comes in at $144.43, which is 11.77% of Florida’s $1,227 weekly salary. Their Florida neighbours offer considerably cheaper tickets – The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have an average cost of $70.67 for their cheapest ticket, for a ticket-to-weekly salary ratio of 5.76%, the sixth lowest in the league. The Jacksonville Jaguars are even further down the list, with the second cheapest tickets in the NFL at $57.29 – 4.67% of the weekly wage.
The Minnesota Vikings is number nine on the list, with their cheapest ticket being $165.11. This equates to 11.74% of Minnesota’s $1,406 weekly salary, which is one of the cheapest on the list.
The New York Jets are in tenth place. Technically their stadium is in New Jersey, where the average weekly salary is $1,636, while their average cheapest ticket is $170.75, which results in a ratio of 10.44%.
A spokesperson from Sidelines commented on the research: “Over the past two years, almost everything has been impacted significantly by inflation, and sport is no exception. This data analyzes the ticket cost from a third-party website, but of course, a game day experience costs a lot more than just the ticket when you factor in costs such as parking and refreshments. The stats reveal that some teams are considerably more affordable for their local fans than others.”
Credit to sidelines.io