Fans getting upset over lack of refunds

avatar

As it becomes more and more evident that the sports seasons are not going to actually happen, fans are starting to get upset how the sports clubs and their resellers such as Stub-Hub and Ticketmaster are delaying refunds to those who pre-purchased tickets to events.

LDNLSTADIUMRENDERINGS02140041.jpg
src
almost seems like a fading memory at this point

It is estimated that the clubs and the ticket resellers have an combined "investment" of over a billion dollars of postponed events that is becoming more and more evident aren't actually ever going to happen. In some instances the clubs are not issuing refunds but instead are giving vouchers for next year's events.

At the moment there is a class action lawsuit against Major League Baseball, all 30 teams and their ticket resellers. The official stance of MLB is that the games are not cancelled but are rather "postponed" and therefore customers are not entitled to a refund as is defined in the "small print" that nobody ever reads.

There is some speculation that the leagues don't actually have the money anymore to give refunds with, and hence this is why the hesitation is occurring. Season ticket holders are in a similar situation with most fans finding that the clubs aren't even addressing the issue. In some instances, fans have actually been automatically charged for next year's season despite the fact that the one they already paid for has been cut short by the shutdown.

All sports leagues are being very tight-lipped on this and are refusing to respond to media inquiries about the situation and claim to be searching for alternatives such as MLB seeking to play the games in rural locations such as Arizona. In the meantime baseball is treating the games in a similar fashion to games being "rained out."

The fans are feeling betrayed and it remains to be seen if this has some lasting loyalty effect. For the time being, billions are being lost by all parties involved and at least as far as MLB is concerned, they intend to suspend players' pay after May 31st.

Personally, I feel that even once corona is in the past for us, the entertainment dollar is going to be one of the last ones to return unless dramatic price cuts are introduced when the country reopens. People will simply have other, more important financial aspects of their lives to focus on.



0
0
0.000
2 comments
avatar

I can't speak for my brother in law who has 8 season tickets to our Atlantic League team but you gotta think of it in a certain perspective. For the divisions such as the Atlantic league, South Atlantic League, Carolina League and the International League (all known leagues in NC) while they may be part of a Major League team (minus the atlantic league) they still need to be maintained in order for us to even watch a game in the future. Wanting a refund means your really didn't care for the team and the local economy it helps. While it may be shut down there are some core members of the team that aren't even players that still go to the stadiums to make sure they are in top shape. You still have the people who work in the ticket center that still go to work even if it is remotely. There are many other behind the scenes positions but not gonna list them all but you see where i am going with this.

Now for my brother in laws sake he bought the season tickets as a way of being a local sponsor. He works for the ad industry so in a way this hurts him as much. Does he demand a refund? I have yet to talk to him about this but if you think about it any company that pulls funding may be frowned upon the locals.

Now what about the people who bought season tickets that aren't from a company? Honestly i was going to going to buy my own set of tickets for this season. I almost bought them in February before covid became more "mainstream" but some certain finances got on the way and i decided to either try to snag a ticket from the brother in law or buy a ticket the day of. It didn't really matter where my seat was I always able to sit anywhere since no one really cared. Lets just say our stadium is really laxed on who is where as long as nothing bad is going on. In a way it's a great place to hang out with friends and family. As the season went on last year players and staff started becoming family in a way. They were always happy to see us and not just cause they are paid to kiss ass by saying such things. Most staff are friends or at least people we knew and grew up with. Seeing them out of work this season is terrible. While some this is a 2nd job just for the season but for the younger ones it's the only time they can work "full time" when not in school to make some decent money. Not asking for a refund helps pay for those type of people. The players make enough money if they cut parts of their salary for this season more money can go towards the back end to keep things afloat.

Now i am not scientist or a doctor but how i see it (and with luck) we may be able to go to a game mid season. Did we miss the 1st half? yeh but some leagues are planning to play most games without spectators just to keep things as normal as they possibly can. If that means we the spectators can come in to watch mid season rather then canceling the whole season then that is something i am ok with.

Before i end this response i do want to note one thing i know the atlantic league is doing. If you have season tickets for the 2020 season any game that is canceled you are allowed to use the ticket for any game this season up to any game next season. Now if you were smart I would keep all the tickets you can and give them to people in need who want to go to the games. It helps fill seats and they (the stadium) can still make the money in concessions.

0
0
0.000
avatar

It's good to see that some leagues are taking it upon themselves to do something that is fair. I have always kind of hated Ticketmaster and StubHub because they drive up prices when they buy all the tickets to major events and then have a scaling price depending on supply and demand. I don't know how any of this works for certain but the prevailing opinion is that they are charging much more than the ticket is actually worth.

it actually makes old school fans miss the scalpers in the parking lots.

0
0
0.000