'Variable Seat Pricing' Is An Unvarying Pain In The Butt For NFL Fans

Overpriced is overpriced, and just because you adjust the magnitude does not mean you change the concept. If you’re wise, you realize loyalty has a limit. Unfortunately it’s the “loyal” fans that are allowing themselves to get royally screwed.

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As the NFL stadium experience gets swallowed up by HD flat screens, RedZone and enticing bar specials, the suits behind the shield have countered. Their retaliation? Sorry, I mean.. their plan to make it right? Variable Seat Pricing — a tactic that would be more effectively titled “Variable Price Gouging.”

What does it mean? Well if a game will probably suck, you’ll pay less. You’ll fork over an amount that’s still too much money, but it’ll be less than what an aggregated flat rate would dictate. This will allow fans to nod and go “Okay, maybe they [favorite team’s front office] gets it.” But every action earns an equal and opposite reaction, except that in NFL economics, “equal” has been smudged from the axiom.

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To compensate for cheaper, “lower-tier” games, some NFL teams are now resorting to prematurely labeling certain games as “premier” or “marquee” and these packages come with a premium markup. For example, examine the New York Jets‘ new policy:

Via For The Win

The Jets’ eight regular-season games will be split into “marquee” and “premier” games. Although the model will save fans some money, it’s still going to cost a premium to watch a team that went 4-12 last season.

Fans will be saving around $20 per seat for “premier” games, but it will still cost more than $100 to sit in some 300-level seats at MetLife Stadium to see the Redskins and the Jaguars.

The biggest problem isn’t with the NFL. It’s with the fans. Diehards drive the market and allow the NFL to exploit them — which in turn means it’s not truly exploitation. Ignorance is no longer an argument. If you don’t like inflated ticket-pricing, you don’t have to keep feeding the pig. NFL stadiums are monoliths in modern times — and all these teams are doing is meeting expected demand with dependable supply.

Jerry Landry is a writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow Jerry on Twitter at @Jerry2Landry, “Like” him on Facebook or add him on Google.