Rod Wood Defends Increased Lions Ticket Prices

First division championship in 30 years. Check.

First playoff win in 32 years. Check.

Two playoff wins in the same season for the first time since 1957. Check.

The 2023 campaign was a banner season for the Detroit Lions in every way imaginable. And, the Lions, on the heels of their newfound success, decided to raise ticket prices for the 2024 season – and not just slightly.

It was a substantial bump-up in ticket price, with an average increase of 30 percent for Lions’ season-ticket holders – and as high as an 85 percent increase in price for certain ticket holders.

To no surprise, when this hike in price was announced in late December (prior to Detroit’s run to the NFC Championship Game), it was not met with a lot of fanfare.

Despite the lack of fan support, team president Rod Wood defended the decision to increase ticket prices at the NFL’s annual league meetings in Orlando, Fla.

“Well, I understand the ticket increase was substantial for certainly lower-bowl seats near the 50-yard line,” Wood said, via the team's social media channel. “But, I think if people went back and looked at what they could have paid for, for those seats on the secondary market, and what our playoff games were going for, it’s really where the market is and we’ve had 96 percent renewal rate. So, nobody’s really abandoned their tickets. We still have, I think it’s approaching 20,000 people on a wait list.

“And, we’ve been very cautious over the years, recently, in not increasing the prices and have really fallen quite a bit behind the league average. And, this barely catches us up to just below league average.”

Additionally, according to Wood, Lions’ season-ticket holders – which already had a chance to opt-in for playoff tickets for the 2024 campaign at the time of renewal – will be given an additional opportunity to opt-in later this year.

The Lions, which are highly expected to sell out their home schedule this upcoming season, sold out of all their season tickets in 2023 for the first time in Ford Field history. Ford Field became the home venue for the franchise in 2002.