Iowa guard Caitlin Clark celebrates with teammates after defeating LSU in an Elite Eight game during the NCAA Tournament on April 1, 2024, in Albany, N.Y.Mary Altaffer/The Associated Press
The average price paid for a ticket on the resale market this week was twice as high for the NCAA women’s Final Four compared with that for the men’s semi-finals, according to a technology company that analyzes prices across multiple platforms.
The average price of a ticket sold to the women’s semi-finals was US$2,323; the average sale price for the men’s was US$1,001.21, Logitix reported Wednesday.
The women’s games Friday match Iowa against Connecticut and South Carolina against North Carolina State at 19,432-seat Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse in Cleveland. Including data from sales made a month ago and longer, the average price for the women’s semi-finals is US$1,131.78, compared with US$400.29 for the same period in 2023.
The men’s games Saturday pit Purdue against North Carolina State and Connecticut against Alabama at 63,400-seat State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz. The overall average ticket price for the men’s semi-finals is US$993.70, compared with US$636.43 in 2023.
A ticket to the women’s championship game on Sunday was selling for an average of US$1,110.63 this week. The average ticket to the men’s title game Monday was selling for US$646.45.
The higher price for the women’s games is partially owing to ticket supply for the men’s games being greater because seating capacity at its venue is three times larger, a Logitix spokesman said. He added that demand for women’s tickets is unprecedented and driven by fanfare for Iowa’s Caitlin Clark, the all-time leading scorer in Division I. The Hawkeyes have played before sellout crowds – at home, on the road and at neutral sites – for all but two games this season.
The NCAA sells ticket packages – now sold out – that include all three games of the Final Four. Face value ranges from US$200 to US$400 for the women’s semi-finals and final and US$250 to US$900 for the men’s semi-finals and final.
Tickets on the resale market can be sold separately for the semi-finals (both games) and final because they are held on different days and require different digital entry QR codes.