StubHub Releases Third Annual NBA Preview: International Sales Grow and Los Angeles Teams Dominate as Super Star Duos Spark Demand
International sales increase, Los Angeles Lakers rank #1 for the third year in a row; New Orleans Pelicans enter Top 10 list with Zion
StubHub, the world’s largest event marketplace, released its third-annual NBA Preview, analyzing data and providing insights on the top teams, most in-demand games and international ticket trends heading into the season.
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Highlights include:
- International ticket sales continue to climb
- Los Angeles dominates, Lakers and Clippers lead Top 10 Teams at #1 and #2, respectively
- Superstar duos have major effect on teams’ ticket demand
- New Orleans Pelicans enter Top 10 for the first time
- Lakers-Clippers home opener is top-selling matchup of the season
INTERNATIONAL DEMAND
Taking NBA games to India for the first time, the league is continuing to see an expanded international profile and fandom. Domestic sales driven by international buyers has grown 34% since last year. New York, California and Florida have the largest rate of international buyers, featuring seven of the top teams.
L.A. CONTINUES TO DOMINATE
The Los Angeles Lakers are the most in-demand team for the third straight season, outselling the #2 Los Angeles Clippers by 32%. The Clippers are the #1 trending team this year, indicating the largest increase in ticket sales of any team this season at nine times the sales of 2018. The two teams are also topping the list of top games with two of their matchups and the Lakers-Clippers home opener earning the top-selling game of the season and considerably outselling last year’s #1 game.
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StubHub’s 2019 Top 10 In-Demand NBA Teams*
- Los Angeles Lakers
- Los Angeles Clippers
- Philadelphia 76ers
- New York Knicks
- Brooklyn Nets
- Golden State Warriors
- Boston Celtics
- Toronto Raptors
- New Orleans Pelicans
- Miami Heat
*Ranking based on StubHub ticket sales as of 10/8/2019 for the 2019 NBA season
SUPERSTAR DUOS BRING THE HEAT
The season brings a variety of new superstar duos, from LeBron James and Anthony Davis to Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. The Clippers have seen sales increase 15x for season opener tickets, while the #2 trending Pelicans – boasting the second biggest sales growth since last season – have seen a 9x increase in sales with Zion Williamson and Lonzo Ball, with many more demand trends seeing an upward climb from the addition of these players.
“The biggest story of this year’s NBA offseason was undoubtedly the rise of the star player duos and StubHub has seen this in sales with a significant uptick from those teams as fans ramp up to see the debut of these incredible athletes,” said Akshay Khanna, GM of the NBA for StubHub. “The Clippers ticket sales were a staggering 800 percent higher this year than last, showing the power of celebrity in the NBA.”
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