This year’s World Series was the perfect storm. Two of the biggest markets are playing in the biggest games. Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Aaron Judge, Juan Soto, Giancarlo Stanton, Gerrit Cole and Yoshinobu Yamamoto highlight the stars on the big stage this year. As a result, ticket prices are among the highest ever in the Fall Classic.
According to CBS’ Megan Cerullo, the average ticket price before the series started was $1,700 for games in Los Angeles and $2,300 in New York. Needless to say, it’s incredibly pricey for the average baseball fan. Last season, the average ticket price for the World Series was $776 across five games, according to CNN.
Ultimately, it comes down to the markets. New York and Los Angeles are the two biggest television markets in the United States. A plethora of celebrities and big entertainment brands call Los Angeles and New York home, indirectly creating the media giants that are Los Angeles and New York.
The money that comes into these markets from TV and entertainment creates local inflation, as seen in ticket prices. While the average baseball fan will not pay over $2,000 to watch their team in the World Series, while it is very tempting, celebrities and big names will, and, as mentioned, New York and Los Angeles have no shortage.
Big media corporations, celebrity culture, television, and movies have propelled Los Angeles and New York to where they are as media markets. The average fan is seeing those successes reflected in World Series ticket prices.
According to ESPN, the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees led Major League Baseball in average attendance for 2024. Knowing that fans show up in great numbers, it should not come as a shock that prices would be set this high.
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