Several NFL players and around two dozen club employees are under investigation for reselling their 2025 Super Bowl (LIX) tickets  X
Sports

Ticketgate scandal: NFL stars accused of flipping Super Bowl seats for profit

Around 100 NFL players and staff face fines and bans after reselling Super Bowl LIX tickets above face value which has triggered league-wide backlash

Swagatalakshmi Roychowdhury

Approximately 100 NFL players and around two dozen club employees are under investigation for reselling their 2025 Super Bowl (LIX) tickets way above their face value prices, which violates league policy derived from the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). It is a violation of NFL rules.

Reselling purchased Super Bowl Tickets at inflated prices is explicitly forbidden by CBA

Under the CBA, each player is allowed to purchase two Super Bowl tickets at face value.

NFL players and employees are given special access to buy Super Bowl tickets often at face value as a privilege. But reselling those tickets for profit takes away access from average fans who are already struggling to afford them.

Players violating the policy face fines of 1.5 times the original ticket price and will be banned from purchasing tickets to the 2026 and 2027 Super Bowls, unless their team competes in the game.

Club employees found guilty face even harsher penalties, up to double the face value of the tickets purchased.

Those who collaborated with ticket "bundlers"—individuals or groups aggregating tickets for resale—may face escalated penalties. They may even be suspended, if they refuse standard punishments .

The investigation spans nearly half of all 32 NFL teams, though no specific names or teams have been publicly named at this stage.

Ticket prices at the game ranged between $950 and $7,500 face value, while resale prices climbed to $2,588–$3,500 on the low end, averaging around $8,076. They peak at over $10,000 per ticket!

This 'Ticketgate' scandal, although not unusual, has outraged fans

Media outlets are calling this scandal “Ticketgate."

At this rate, many fans already feel the NFL is becoming more corporate and less fan-friendly. They are starting to think that the system is rigged for the rich, leaving true fans out of the experience which can feel unfair.

NFL Compliance Officer Sabrina Perel has issued a memo to teams as a reminder that no employee or player should profit from NFL-issued tickets, and announced enhanced compliance training and harsher penalties as the league prepares for Super Bowl LX.

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