Bulls fans are paying more for the Chicago team's popularity, a new report shows.
Despite Michael Jordan's departure in 1998, the Chicago Bulls have remained one of the more popular franchises in the NBA, and that translates into higher ticket prices.
According to a 24/7 Wall St. report, the Bulls have the fourth highest ticket prices in the NBA , behind the Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks and Miami Heat, respectively.
Two other Chicago teams made the list for high ticket prices: the Bears ranked third in the NFL and the Cubs ranked fourth among MLB teams.
The average secondary-market ticket price for a Chicago Bulls home game is $111.12 with an average home attendance of 22,161 in an arena with a basketball seating capacity of 20, 917. Though the Bulls haven't won a championship in the past 10 years, the team has made seven playoff appearances in that time frame and won 417 games, the 12th most in the NBA.
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It was surmised that ticket prices are influenced by team popularity, historical size of its fan base, seating availability, number of games played each year and any short-term success the franchise may be experiencing. The Bulls factor into all of those categories, especially when it comes to short-term success.
The Bulls won the most games in the NBA two years running, and their appearance in the Eastern Conference Finals last season had most believing they were a real contender to win a championship in 2011-2012.
With respect to popularity and the size of the team's fan base, in April the league announced Derrick Rose had the number one selling jersey and the Bulls were tops in NBA merchandise sales for the first time since 2001. This of course can be attributed to three factors: Chicago's most recent win/loss records, being perceived as the main rival of the Miami Heat and Rose winning league MVP during the 2010-2011 season.
The popularity of the Bulls is sure to remain strong even in the absence of Rose next season because if there is one thing that Chicago sports fans are known for is having hope. Because of that, any short term disappointment is outdone by constant dreams of long-term success in this sports crazed city.
