By Mark Halpern
I am a die-hard Mets, Knicks, and Rangers fan in New York. With all the excitement that goes into being at a professional sporting event, whether it’s MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL, MLS, or something else. Today, can the working family of four even afford to see their favorite team?
Over my lifetime, I have had the distinct pleasure of attending four different world series (NYM vs. BOS 1986, NYM/NYY 2000, MIA vs. NYY 2003, and NYM/KC 2015). I am a die-hard Dallas Cowboys fan and have been one since 1982. I have traveled to games all across the country and not just the contact sports, but I like checking in on any chance I could see a huge match, so Soccer has come up more. I am also beginning to learn Crickett and Jai Lai—another sport with a piece of one’s country.
As fans prepare to go to the game, they only need one ticket for themselves and one each for the spouse, and once per child. Tickets bought and paid about $65 a piece, which equals about 240 dollars. Okay, you have your tickets, but if the stadium is not a hop, skip, or jump, you need to plan a way to get there. Usually, that means driving. Let’s add some costs: Gas ( probably between 35-40$), Parking ($20 minimum), so already you are -$300 by the time you’re through the front door. It’s souvenir time for fans alike. Tables of hats, pennants, Jerseys, novelty cups/mugs, sweatshirts, and different multi-picture shirts of the stadium all cost an individual something. You try to limit your spending, but this is a family-making memories day, so for $175, you get everyone something. Now, over to your seats, and you know it’s time to eat. If all have the same thing for the four, there is a reasonable $80. The game is incredible, and the excitement is in the air. Let’s face it: one little nibble isn’t cut. Another $50 for food, and you swear not a dollar more, but, of course, comes cotton candy and has two bags. The kids look at you with puppy eyes, and you want to be super daddy, so you see, yes. By the eighth inning, you have been lucky to have seen two actual innings between getting food, going to the bathroom, and taking your kid. And you finally get back, and the Mets scored nine runs while you waited for your son to go. You get back to the seats, and your wife and daughter are having a blast from all the excitement at the game. Inside, you’re a mess, but it’s their reaction; why you’re here.
Ever have to wait for a men’s room for an open stall? Learn to be patient because everyone has stage fright, so you wait and miss vital points of the game. Then you walk back to your seats, and the stadium is going wild, and your spouse is telling you about the walk-off grand slam, and this is what you have paid to do. You paid over $500 to attend this game and enjoyed just about two innings where nothing happened.
Now comes the next part, which is getting home. Getting to your car is sometimes challenging because so many cars are alike. You finally get set to try and leave, and everyone going the same way should take about an hour. Well, three hours later, you pull into the garage. The wife has one kid; you have the other, carrying them up to their bed. Go shower, clean up, and realize you spent $745 for 30 minutes of entertainment.
Now comes the practical part of the article. Parents have two young kids and can’t afford to attend a live game because of these rising costs, so dad does the next best thing. He gets an entertainment center with the capability to record his shows and games at a simple press of a button. Bring yourself down some food that was in your house, along with a couple of brewskis, and you watch the game. It would help if you made a run to the porta-potty, but you want to ensure you get everything. Well, pause the station and do your business, and when you return, you have caught everything. Or let’s say you forgot to pause, and you come out and want to see what happened; you have an instant replay in your hand. At the end of the game, win or lose, your total expenditures are in your house, such as electricity and food you consumed. So unless it is a massive game with records implications to the Super Bowl, I can understand that, but I get to see any game I want and stop it to take a phone call or grab a bite. Again, if I had the cash flow, I would have seasons at Citi for my wife and two kids. However, I can give them the same experience for about 80% less, and that’s how the old man sees it.
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