I’m excited to announce a new project that StubHub is running called Ultimate Fan. Over on our Facebook page (which you all should be fans of already!), is the first of what will be a monthly fan program to find the biggest fanatic of a particular genre. With June kicking off the summer concert season and Bonnaroo just a few days away, what better theme to launch the Ultimate Fan series then the “Ultimate Festival Fan!”

Here’s how it works. If you think you’re the Ultimate Festival Fan, head over to our Facebook page and submit a photo and/or short story that demonstrates you are the ultimate fan. This doesn’t mean that you visited Coachella once with your parents. This means that you’ve crisscrossed the country, waited in 10-hour parking lines, slept in tents, bartered for water, and know the organizers at Outside Lands and Sasquatch on a first name basis. At the end of the month, we’ll chose the top 10 finalists and put their stories/photos up for vote. The crowd will then pick the ultimate fan who will receive a $500 StubHub gift certificate. Not bad, huh!

Each month we’ll spotlight a new category so if you’ve never braved the dust storms of Coachella, don’t worry, we’ll have another option to enter in July. Make sure to check out our Facebook page for more details. Good luck!

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Two games of the Western Conference Finals are in the books, and the Oklahoma City Thunder head home to climb out of an 0-2 hole. While Thunder fans may not be riding as high as they were last week, fans that are still looking to secure tickets might have a bigger grin on their faces. Ticket prices for Game 3 tomorrow have fallen 20% since the start of the series and could stand to dip even further in price. Here’s a look at the data for Games 3 and 4 in Oklahoma City:

Game 3 - fans have paid an average price of $236 and a low of $60, Oklahomans make up 62% compared to Texans at 13%

Game 4 - fans have paid an average price of $285 and a low of $78, Oklahomans make up 48% compared to Texans at 22%

Prices Just as Nice in South Beach

The Miami Heat are up 1-0 in their respective series against the Boston Celtics, but ticket prices are not outlandish as some may have expected. In fact, last minute fans can score a ticket for tonight’s game in the $50-range. In fact, fans that have already purchased tickets on StubHub have paid an average price less than $200, with a low of $49. Quite a difference in pricing from last year’s Eastern Conference Finals versus the Chicago Bulls, when average prices for home games at the American Airlines Arena hovered in the $275-$315 range. 

Stanley Cup Finals Tickets Fall Below $200

Tonight the Stanley Cup Finals begin, with the New Jersey Devils hosting the Los Angeles Kings in what we all hope to be an exciting Game 1. We’ve seen a ton of last minute purchases today, as prices noticeably fell in the last couple days. Why? Demand is still high, but the market has settled and now the fans that cannot attend are looking to quickly offload their tickets. Great for fans like me that plan way, way last minute… In fact, prices in New Jersey are nearly half the prices in Los Angeles.

If anyone would like a deeper dive into the trends, feel free to reach out. Otherwise, we’ll be posting updates as each series moves along. Thanks!

This year’s Western Conference Final is more affordable than ever, with prices trending 30% lower than last year – the cheapest we’ve seen since the 2007 finals when the Spurs played the Jazz.  Tickets for Game 1 in San Antonio are evenly matched compared to last year in Dallas.  You can get in for under $100, and watch former St. Mary’s Gael, Patty Mills take the court.

INDY 500:
The Indianapolis 500 takes place on Sunday, and while most fans are naturally from Indiana, folks are traveling from Texas, California, even Australia and Rio de Janeiro for the annual event.  General Admission tickets will get you in for under $50.

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Tonight sports fans have a few different options: Game 4 of the NHL Eastern Conference Finals at the Prudential Center, Game 5 of a lopsided Lakers-Thunder series, or Game 5 of a (now) three-game set between the Celtics and 76ers. Last minute fans can still pull the trigger for a couple hours for each game, but gauging things from a ticketing perspective, the sole hockey game of the night is the preferred choice for fans. Granted the massive New York/New Jersey market doesn’t make for a true apples-to-apples comparison, but nonetheless, sales demand still surpasses both NBA games combined. 

Here’s a look at how StubHub buyers break out for tonight’s game in New Jersey:

• New Jersey 57%
• New York 32%
• Connecticut/Pennsylvania each 2%
• All other states less than 2%
• The farthest buyer is coming from Victoria, Australia

Any guesses on how the jerseys will actually split tonight? Ticket buyers are roughly 60/40 in favor of New Jersey, but odds are the crowd will be 60/40 in favor of Rangers fans…

Looking Back at the Weekend at STAPLES

Los Angeles had no shortage of sports over the weekend, and we were curious to see how expensive (and how cheap — check out the Clippers) tickets sold for over the weekend. Here’s how things shook out:

• Thursday: Game 3 Coyotes-Kings - high $3250/low $19
• Friday: Game 3 Thunder-Lakers - $11,648/$19
• Saturday: Game 3 Spurs-Clippers - $1300/$5
• Saturday: Game 4 Thunder-Lakers - $7415/$20
• Sunday: Game 4 Coyotes-Kings - $703/$15
• Sunday: Game 4 Spurs-Clippers - $2100/$5

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I know that the conventional wisdom is that the early bird gets the worm, but data from latest survey shows that this might not always be true when it comes to buying tickets to sporting events. According to data from a survey conducted by Penn Schoen Berland, fans who waited until the day of an event to purchase tickets saved 30 percent on average than those who bought tickets one month prior. So far in 2012, the average ticket price for a concert or marquee sporting event one month from the event date was $95 on StubHub. However, just three days away from the event the average ticket price dropped to $66, and within 24 hours of the event the average ticket price was $62.

This backs up all the recommendations I’ve been trying to tell everyone. As Ray Elias, our chief marketing officer points out in this USA Today article, when it comes to the ticket industry, the longer you wait, the lower the price will usually get. Look at it this way, a ticket is an expiring item. Once the event date passes, the value of a ticket drops to $0. So as that moment approaches, sellers will try anything to unload their seats because in a short while they will soon be worth nothing!

This year’s Super Bowl is a great example. Once the Conference Championships were over, prices for the Big Game were close to $2,500. By Super Bowl Sunday, the get-in price was down to $900. This means that fans who want to purchase tickets to high-profile games, such as the NHL or NBA playoffs, can likely score the best deal by waiting until game day to purchase.

The survey also highlighted some of the other trends that are taking place in society, as more and more fans are waiting until the last minute to make plans and purchase tickets. I found this pretty fascinating, and obviously the rise of mobile devices is making it easier for friends to connect, make plans, and buy tickets all at a moment’s notice.

If you want to read all the findings of the report, which are pretty interesting, check out our full release here.

All three teams host a game tonight, and we’ve looked into sales data to see which game fans care about the most. Any guesses?

Not surprising: Based purely on the numbers, Pacers-Heat is the front-runner, as fans have purchased more tickets to this game on StubHub (over 3000) and are paying 2.5 times more on average than the Clippers-Spurs game tonight. Spurs tickets, even in the playoffs, have historically fallen on the low end — right now, prices start at $10 and stand a chance to dip further as we get closer to tip-off. 

The Kings-Coyotes falls in the middle of the two NBA games, with the average fan paying about $80 on StubHub for tickets. 

Speaking of LA 

Fans in the Los Angeles-area will have a hard time escaping the madness at STAPLES Center, as six games will take place in the arena between Thursday and Sunday, including a couple weekend doubleheaders. On Thursday, we’ll be unveiling a new infograph that stacks up all six events to one another, so stay tuned. 

Any questions? Shoot me a note at jferrer@stubhub.com