The FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023, which was anticipated to be a sold-out event due to its location in the basketball-crazy nation of the Philippines, encountered unexpected challenges resulting from ticket pricing disparities that impacted attendance in certain seating sections.
FIBA Secretary-General Andreas Zagklis acknowledged that certain ticket categories were priced too high, leading to a noticeable decline in attendance in specific seating areas.
“The ticket pricing, which was determined by the local organizing committee but reviewed by FIBA, so we have our share in this, of course, and we were part of this process. For some categories, it was unsuccessful,” stated the FIBA official during a wrap-up press conference held at the SM Mall of Asia, just minutes before the bronze medal match between Canada and Team USA last Sunday.
“I can say that this is one of the major debriefing points we’ll have. Several times in the venue, where the fourth and fifth tiers were full, the first tier was full, but the second and third were not. So that’s where you immediately see the impact of pricing. This happened several times. So we can say the second and the third tier were priced higher than the market would accept.”
Zagklis also pointed out that when the home team Gilas Pilipinas played at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, attendance at the SM Mall of Asia Arena, where Group C and D were housed, suffered.
“When the local team is playing, it’s difficult to fill up the other venue that is playing at the same time. Because those who are not in the venue will watch their national team on TV or on their phone. We did have here, if I’m not mistaken, 50-50 plus games to fill in the venues. Indeed, we would have liked to have had slightly higher attendance here in Manila,” Zagklis revealed.
Category 1 prices at the SM Mall of Asia Arena ranged from P27,299 to P11,099, while the most expensive ticket at the Smart Araneta Coliseum was also priced at P27,299. The most affordable seats were priced between P499 and P699.
The Philippines set a record-breaking attendance of 38,155 during the opening game between Gilas Pilipinas and the Dominican Republic at the Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan, but subsequent games at other venues did not enjoy the same luxury due to the high ticket prices.
(C) FIBA.basketball
“You’re right; in some pricing categories, we made the wrong judgment before the tournament, and this is something to review for Doha because there, all 92 games are in the same city, of course. There, people will be able to buy their tickets from the moment their team qualifies, and they know where they will play,” Zagklis said.
“Here, we had the additional element; you had to wait until the draw to see where your team was playing, and that changed the plans of several of our traveling fans.”
Despite it all, FIBA is still satisfied with the overall turnout of the event.
“Overall, we are pleased with how it worked, considering that in some cases, we may have had a big storm just before the game, which caused a traffic jam, and we had the venue half-empty at the beginning and only 75-percent full at halftime, as some people might have bought a ticket but then did not arrive or decided not to come,” he said.
Germany eventually won the entire tournament after defeating Serbia 83-77 in the gold medal match at the SM Mall of Asia Arena last Sunday, with a total of 12,022 spectators in attendance.
