The True Cost of Being A Sports Superfan

How much does it cost to be a sports superfan?

A study in 2023 showed that around three quarters of Americans consider themselves sports fans. This means we’re more likely to follow our favorite leagues and teams than other countries with major markets, such as the United Kingdom, where only 64% of people say they actively watch sports.

And as any dedicated sports fan will tell you, there are definitely different levels of fan support out there. While some fans take a casual approach and might catch the occasional game at home, others devote their lives to cheering on their teams and are willing to pay for the chance to see the action live.

With controversial ticketing prices on the rise, such as the NFL’s decision to remove UK-based games from season tickets, we decided to take a look at which Big Four and Premier League teams are the most expensive to support, as well as comparing leagues to see which sets the highest prices for its fans. From the price of home and away games, to fan merchandise, and even TV subscriptions, we’ll be investigating the real cost of being a sporting superfan.

What is the average cost of an away game?

Following your team to an away game is one of the best parts of being a sports fan, but the price of a ticket can vary depending on which sport and team you’re watching. Not only do venues charge different rates for seats and food, but local hotels and travel costs can also impact the price.

Therefore, to calculate the average cost of an away day, we took the total cost of a season ticket for each team in the Big Four leagues, then added the price of parking, travel, food (one hotdog) and drink (one beer and one soft drink), before dividing this by the number of away games in a team’s calendar, to give us a rough estimate of how much a typical trip would cost.

Based on this, the most affordable league for away games wound up being Major League Baseball, with the average game costing $399. However, with 81 away games played by each team every season, it’s a particularly intensive schedule to follow.

Meanwhile, attending an NHL team’s away games averages out at around $468 per game, while NBA fans can expect to spend around $510 for ticketing.

Overall, though, the NFL ranks as the most expensive league to follow. Despite each team only playing eight to nine away games each season, fans can expect to spend as much as $590 per game if they’re looking to follow their team across America for an entire season.

The actual cost of being a superfan

It’s not just ticket prices that vary between leagues, but the prices of merchandise too. While each Big Four league maintains a similar price for its jerseys across each team, the average cost can rise or fall when comparing each sport to one another. However, this is usually very minimal and there’s multiple different options. In our data, we simply chose the most popular hoodie for each team.

However, one thing that does vary between teams is season ticket costs and parking, with some venues definitely fetching a higher price than others. A season ticket for the New York Yankees, for example, costs $5,670 – the most of any Big Four team! By comparison, the Chicago White Sox have season tickets available for just $584.

Which teams have the most expensive schedules for superfans to follow?

With differing season ticket costs in mind, which teams charge the most for theirs in each league? Well, we’ve already discussed how the Yankees have the highest season ticket prices in the MLB, but they’re also closely followed by the Boston Red Sox ($4,455) and Houston Astros ($3,403).

The Yankees also boast the highest parking costs for home games of any American sports team, with a season costing as much as $2,498 across all their games.

For NHL fans, the Toronto Maple Leafs charge the most for their season tickets, with prices reaching $3,854, while the Boston Bruins’ season tickets are the second most expensive in the league ($2,911), and the Seattle Krakens ranking third ($2,870).

By comparison, the Anaheim Ducks charge just $792 for their season tickets, making them the most affordable NHL team to support (and the only team to charge less than $1,000).

The New York Knicks’ season tickets fetch the highest price in the NBA, with a full season of games costing $4,092 to attend. They’re closely followed by the Golden State Warriors, who do have slightly cheaper season tickets ($4,050), but more expensive home game parking ($1,850 per season, vs the Knicks’ $1,570), while Memphis Grizzlies fans can enjoy the cheapest season ticket prices in the league for $688.

Finally, the NFL ranks as the league with the least expensive season tickets overall, but its small number of games means other sports offer better value for money. The San Francisco 49ers boast the league’s most expensive season ticket ($1,400), narrowly beating the Philadelphia Eagles ($1,300) and Dallas Cowboys ($1,300). Meanwhile, an Arizona Cardinals season ticket is the most affordable in the league, costing a minimum of $485 for the cheapest option.

The cost of being a Premier League superfan

Now that we’ve talked about the price of following a Big Four team, let’s compare it to one of the biggest leagues overseas.

The Premier League is England’s top soccer league, with millions of fans around the world watching each week. But while its away games are cheaper on average, the cost of viewership from home is much higher than in any American league.

The most expensive season ticket for a Premier League club comes from Arsenal, who charge £1,127 ($1,510) to attend each of their matches for a season. Their fellow London-based teams, Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur, then rank second and third, respectively. Chelsea charge £880 ($1,179) for their season tickets, while Tottenham’s cost £856 ($1,147).

The real kicker for Premier League fans, though, is the cost of their TV and streaming packages.

An annual Sky Sports subscription, which features most games in the Premier League, costs £264 in the UK ($353.76), while fans who want to watch their team compete in European tournaments will have to pay another £216 ($289.44) for a TNT Sports subscription.

Keep up with the action from home

Of course, for many of us, it’s unrealistic to catch every game in a team’s season live. Whether it’s the high cost of travel or work and family commitments, most of us will have to settle for the home viewing experience.

But, if you’re looking to get more out of your sports fandom, then why not play along with your favorite teams using Hard Rock Bet? Visit our sportsbook page for the latest odds on all the biggest games across America.

Methodology

This analysis estimates the annual cost of being a dedicated fan across five major leagues: the NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, and the English Premier League (EPL).

To create a fair comparison, we broke fan expenses into three key categories:

• Total Game Costs: This includes the average season ticket price, parking fees, and the cost of one beer, one soft drink, and one hotdog per home game. It also factors in estimated travel and ticket expenses for all away games, assuming fans attend every match their team plays.
• Yearly Merchandise Costs: We considered the typical yearly spend on official team gear, including a home and away jersey, team hat, and hoodie.
• Yearly Extra Viewing Costs: This covers the price of streaming or broadcast subscriptions used to watch games at home, such as MLB TV or equivalent league-specific platforms, plus general sports streaming services.

Because each league’s schedule varies dramatically, for instance, 162 games in MLB versus 17 in the NFL, the total estimated annual cost of fandom differs significantly between sports.

Data collected 1st October 2025.