Tickets for Federer’s last match cost more than twice that of a World Cup final ticket
A ticket to see Federer at London’s O2 cost up to £15,000, compared to a likely £6,000 for a World Cup final ticket in Qatar
Roger Federer at the 2022 Laver Cup
Image Credit: AI/ Reuters/ Panoramic
Some fans paid £15,000 to see Roger Federer‘s final match at the Laver Cup in September, more than twice the top price on the market for this month’s football World Cup final.
That’s despite the fact that it could be the last chance to see Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo on the world stage.
Federer bowed out of tennis after more than two decades, the 20-times Grand Slam winner playing his last match alongside his oldest and closest rival, Rafael Nadal, at London’s O2.
Research by tennis hospitality experts Vision4Sport showed that a Federer ticket is among the most prized in world sport.
Chris Newbold, the director at Vision4Sport, said there were a number of reasons why a Federer ticket was considered more valuable than a ticket to the World Cup final, from concerns about being in Qatar, to the alcohol ban.
“You can pay to go and watch Federer and you know you are going to see Federer,” he said in a press release. “Whereas you may pay to go to watch Argentina at the World Cup and Messi might be injured, he might not have played the whole game, you’re paying to watch the team not the individual.
“It’s a tough comparison to make but I think Federer captures everyone’s imagination more than any other sportsman that we’ve seen in the modern era.
“Fans at the Laver Cup were willing to pay up to £15,000 for an exhibition match knowing that this was going to be Federer’s last hurrah.”
Cost of living crisis a contributing factor
“We’ve seen uncertainty around the host country, uncertainty around the cost of living at home and what you’re going to be able to do when you’re actually there, leading to a dramatic dip in demand,” he said.
“It’s almost like the stock market when people leave it so late to book tickets. In the immediate aftermath of the semi-finals, for 24 to 36 hours, that price for the final will hit up to £6,000.
“Those sums could tail off as people realise that probably isn’t good value for money at the moment.”
Newbold said ticket prices are rising for most sporting events, due to inflation and soaring costs.
“Not just for the World Cup but across pretty much every event that we cover, we’ve seen a significant rise in pricing over the last year,” he said. “The Monaco Formula One Grand Prix for example, looks like it’s going to be close to 50 percent more expensive in 2023 than it was in 2022.
“I think it’s just all around inflation. With the World Cup once every four years, there’s always that jump from the previous tournament.”
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