The NFL playoffs are here, but one game is sticking out above the rest: Detroit Lions vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Divisional game, set to go-down on Sunday, January 21 at the Lions’ Ford Field, is already proving to be the hottest ticket in the history of the NFL playoffs.
The Lions last hosted a Divisional round game in 1992 when they played at the Pontiac Silverdome; while they defeated the Cowboys 38-6, the team ended up losing to the eventual Super Bowl XXVI champion Washington Redskins in the NFC Championship game on the road. Now, after all these years, Lions fans are more than ready to see their team in the playoffs — and sales data shows they’re willing to pay a pricey penny.
According to sales data from Ticket Club, the secondary resale ticketing site that runs on a membership model, allowing eventgoers to shop for tickets without service fees, the average price fans are spending on the Lions vs. Buccs game is $954, with the next closest average ticket price for a Divisional round game clocking-in at $733 for the 49ers vs. Packers.
This is definitely an uptick from previous years; according to Ticket Club, this is the highest Divisional Round NFL playoffs ticket price average the ticketer has seen across its platform aside from the 2020-21 playoffs, where crowd sizes were significantly limited, causing prices to jump higher.
While the 49ers have seen very high prices for their home games in each of the past two seasons — averaging over $800 both times — the Lions game is something else entirely. Fans are willing to pay more than double the average price being paid to see either of the NFC Divisional Round games this season, Ticket Club data found.
“It’s obvious that Lions fans are over the moon with how their team is performing this season, and that excitement is translating directly into the demand driving the ticket prices we’re seeing this week,” Ticket Club spokesperson Sean Burns told TicketNews. “Couple that with the fact that Buccaneers fans considering travel from Tampa don’t have to worry about frigid gameday temperatures in Ford Field’s dome, it makes this one something of a perfect storm.”
This is certainly a season for the Lions; they played in three of the 20-most watched games, broke a franchise record for winning 12 games, and scored their first NFC North title in history. Now, all eyes are on Detroit as a spot to the NFC championship is at stake. If the Lions defeat the Buccaneers, they’ll head to one of the championship games on January 28. Then, the AFC and NFC Championship winners will head to Super Bowl LVIII on February 11 at Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium. R&B superstar Usher is set to perform the halftime show.
