May 24, 2022: -People are changing their spending habits as prices jump that were not so high in four decades, which makes choices that prefer experiences. That means significant demand for live sports.

Demand for sports attendance is “unresponsive to price changes,” said a Baltimore County University of Maryland sports economics professor known as Dennis Coates. “Good times, bad times, high prices, it doesn’t change consumers’ behavior” around spending on sports.

Now that pandemic restrictions are lifting, people are looking to get out more even as cases remain elevated in several places. “I think people want high-end experiences, want to get out, and have been pent-up for a few years now,” Ari Emanuel, CEO of Ultimate Fighting Championship owner Endeavor, said on CNBC.

Ticket prices reflect demand, and they fluctuate throughout the whole season. That was illustrated when ticket prices for the coming 2022 NFL games used to average $307 immediately after releasing the league’s schedule, said secondary market platform SeatGeek. Though that price was decreased from an average of $411 out of the gate in the previous year, it’s higher than the average of $305 in the year 2020, when they could not attend because of Covid. The standard in 2019, before the disease seized the globe, was $258.

As demand increases, teams and organizations are also increasing their prices. The Fan Cost Index produced by Team Marketing Report said that a sports marketing firm in Chicago, spending rates per fan surged for the NFL and the NBA in their latest seasons. The index calculated the cost for nonpremium seats, two beers, four sodas, two hot dogs, merchandise, and parking costs, according to the CEO of that firm, Chris Hartweg.

This week’s concession menu for the PGA Championship is $18 beers. This spring, fans are packing arenas for the NHL and NBA playoffs.