49ers Score NFL’s Highest Ticket Revenue at $136M, Cardinals Last
The San Francisco 49ers fell a game short of the Super Bowl last year, losing to the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC championship game. But the club did finish the season on top by one metric.
The 49ers generated the NFL’s highest net ticket revenue during the 2022 season, according to three people familiar with the league’s internal box office report who were not authorized to speak publicly. San Francisco brought in $136 million in net gate revenue from general seating and club seating (luxury suites are excluded). The team finished second in 2021 behind the Las Vegas Raiders.
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The 49ers raised ticket prices ahead of the 2022 season, following two trips to the NFC championship game over the previous three years—it’s now three trips in four years. The Niners’ season ticket revenue also got a boost in 2021 when the club raised prices by $20 on average while including many concessions items for free as part of a “member inclusive” ticket price.
The NFL gathers the data annually and shares the results with its 32 teams, covering gross ticket revenue, net revenue, total tickets sold and visiting team’s share (VTS). The NFL declined to comment on the contents of the report.
The Dallas Cowboys sold the most tickets last year and finished second behind the 49ers in net revenue. Following the Cowboys were the Raiders, New York Giants and Eagles; the Los Angeles Rams and New England Patriots are next at nearly identical net revenue.
The Raiders finished third despite selling the fifth-fewest tickets in the NFL. It reflects the high prices the club can charge at Allegiant Stadium, which opened in 2020 following the team’s move from Oakland. The Raiders hold back some of their ticket inventory to capture more revenue through dynamic pricing. The Patriots have a similarly wide disparity, thanks to the smaller capacity at Gillette Stadium and consistently strong performance. The club tied for sixth in revenue but was 23rd in tickets sold.
At the other end of the spectrum, the Green Bay Packers sold the seventh-most tickets but ranked 23rd in net receipts, just behind the Cleveland Browns.
The Arizona Cardinals finished No. 32 on net ticket revenue with $58 million, a tad less than the Jacksonville Jaguars who ranked 31st. Both clubs had their ticket revenue dinged by hosting games outside the U.S., with the Cardinals in Mexico City and Jaguars in London as part of the NFL’s international series. The Cardinals and Jags would have finished ahead of the 30th-ranked Cincinnati Bengals without the forgone ticket revenue.
The NFL used to “make up” the shortfall in local revenue when teams had to relinquish a home game to play internationally, but the policy changed last season. As part of the expansion to a 17-game schedule, the league determined that every team will play internationally at least once over the next eight years. So instead of making teams whole, the NFL just pays travel expenses under the rationale that every team will lose a home game during that time.
The Washington Commanders sold the fewest tickets last season and generated $64 million in net revenue, which ranked 28th, up three spots from the previous season. The puny gate didn’t stop Josh Harris from paying $6.05 billion for the club with expectations that the long-suffering fan base and sponsors will return now that Dan Snyder is out of the picture.
The Detroit Lions finished just behind the Commanders by net revenue.
The Rams and Chargers share SoFi Stadium but generate very different ticket revenue, despite a similar number of tickets sold. The Rams ranked sixth on net revenue, while the Chargers were 17th. The disparity is less sharp at MetLife Stadium, as the Giants ranked fourth and the Jets 11th, with a gap of roughly $15 million between the two. The Jets’ rank shot up from 23rd in 2021 when a COVID-19 hangover impacted business. The club should have a further ticket revenue boost this year of more than 10%, thanks largely to the buzz around the arrival of quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
NFL bylaws require teams to share 34% of ticket revenue with other clubs. Clubs can deduct certain expenses from the shared total and get waivers from certain obligations tied to renovations or new stadium construction. The VTS pool rankings are very different because of this, with the Denver Broncos sharing the most ticket revenue followed by the New Orleans Saints.
Every team received $21.6 million from its cut of VTS in 2022.
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