Lions not happy with Vikings buying $2 million of tickets for Week 18 clash
01/04/2025 07:35 PM
Going into the most anticipated game of the 2024 regular season, the Detroit Lions have a bone to pick with the Minnesota Vikings. Before the Lions and Vikings clash in Week 18 on Sunday Night Football, the away team reportedly bought out just under 2,000 tickets for approximately $2 million and re-sold them to their fans for a discounted price, per SI’s Albert Breer.
“In the days leading up to Sunday night's showdown against the Detroit Lions, the Vikings took the unusual measure of buying around 1,900 tickets for the road game on the secondary market, at about $1,000 apiece, for a total approaching $2 million,” Breer wrote. “The team then turned around and sent an email to season ticket holders, offering the opportunity to buy the tickets at a much lower price point, and in some cases for as little as $200 per ticket.
“The rival Lions flagged it, with the team's ticket office noticing the unusual activity, then finding out about the email. The email said, ‘As a valued season ticket member, we want to offer you the opportunity to purchase lower-level seats for Sunday night's game.’ The tickets were available on a first-come-first-serve basis, and the team added in the email that they were ‘intended to be used by Vikings fans and not positioned for resale.’ ”
With this game taking place at Ford Field, it looks like the Vikings were doing their best to counter the effects of home-field advantage. Considering that approximately 700 miles separate these NFC North foes, many Vikings fans are likely willing to make the trip to root for their team in their biggest game of the regular season.
The winner of Sunday Night Football in Week 18 will clinch the No. 1 seed in the NFC Playoff Picture. The loser, even with an outstanding record and impressive regular season, will be knocked down to the No. 5 seed, foregoing a first-round by and home-field advantage in the playoffs.
Now, while the Lions were rightfully upset about the Vikings buying nearly $2 million worth of tickets to Week 18’s clash, the NFL chimed in, noting that Minnesota committed no foul play.
Although the Vikings are re-selling tickets to an away game, they claimed to have done it so “players' and staffers' families had a better experience at one of the biggest regular-season games in team history.”
Though each team gets allotted tickets for away games, it’s reported that those seats tend to be in unideal spots within the stadium. So, to give those fans a better chance of getting more ideal seats for this incredibly high-stakes matchup, the NFL didn’t step in to put a stop to this.
Although the Lions would’ve preferred 100% of the crowd be repping light blue, the Vikings’ $2 million efforts appear to make Ford Field a split audience.
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