{"id":1512,"date":"2017-12-01T00:54:53","date_gmt":"2017-12-01T00:54:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fanhospitality.com\/blog\/?p=1512"},"modified":"2017-12-14T21:28:35","modified_gmt":"2017-12-14T21:28:35","slug":"the-nfl-super-bowl-ticket-lottery","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fanhospitality.com\/blog\/2017\/12\/01\/the-nfl-super-bowl-ticket-lottery\/","title":{"rendered":"The 2018 NFL Super Bowl Ticket Lottery"},"content":{"rendered":"

Everybody knows it\u2019s probably going to cost them an arm and a leg to get Super Bowl tickets, but there is another way to get them: The NFL Super Bowl Ticket Lottery. Like any lottery though, your odds of winning are definitely not great.<\/p>\n

So how does the lottery work? How can you enter? And where\u2019s it gone this year? Read on for what we know…<\/p>\n

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Photo Credit: Flickr, Mark Ou<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The History of the Super Bowl Ticket Lottery<\/h2>\n

Up until this year, the NFL was throwing normal fans a bone by offering up a limited number of Super Bowl tickets that they could win via a lottery, or the \u201cSuper Bowl Random Drawing\u201d as they called it.<\/p>\n

While always remaining a little vague on the subject, the NFL had somewhere between 500 and 1,000 tickets available each year for lucky winners of this drawing. The NFL never heavily promoted the lottery or distributed much information about it. Often they wouldn’t reveal exactly how many tickets they\u2019d be giving away.<\/p>\n

Many fans didn’t even know the lottery existed. Lots of experts speculate the NFL operated this way to keep the odds of winning somewhere in this stratosphere. For example, in 2012 there were 1,000 tickets to give away and 30,000 entrants.
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Rules for Entering the Lottery<\/h2>\n

To enter, all you had to do was mail the NFL a request for tickets via registered or certified mail. Other than the cost of postage, it was free to throw your hat in the ring. Kind of a no-lose situation.\u00a0Sort of like writing a letter to Santa Claus.<\/p>\n

Stipulations? You could only enter once per address. And you had to mail in your request between February 1st and June 1st of the year preceding the Super Bowl you wanted to attend. (Meaning you\u2019d have no idea which teams would actually be playing.)<\/p>\n

Regular season NFL ticket holders were entered into the lottery automatically.<\/p>\n

If by some miracle you ended up winning, well, you didn\u2019t actually get free<\/em>\u00a0tickets to the Super Bowl. Instead, you won the option to purchase<\/em> two tickets at face value. Granted, that would save you quite a bit of money based on what tickets go for in the secondary market these days.<\/p>\n

Face value changes every year, but in the past it’s been as little as $500 or $650 per ticket. Today, face value could be anywhere between $800 and $2500, depending on the seats.<\/p>\n

Some years, winners received their tickets via overnight mail in January. In more recent years, they had to pick them up on site and in person on the day of the game. The NFL said it was to make sure the lottery winner was actually the person who received the tickets. But it was probably to prevent scalping<\/a> too. (The NFL actually determined in the past that most winners resold their tickets.)<\/p>\n

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Photo Credit: Flickr, Mike Morbeck<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

So What\u2019s Up This Year?<\/h2>\n

Unfortunately, the NFL announced this year that it has discontinued its usual Super Bowl Lottery. Womp.<\/p>\n

Instead, they\u2019ll be handpicking 500 fans who exemplify awesomeness. Okay okay, so the NFL actually said they\u2019ll be giving tickets away to their \u201cgreatest and most loyal fans.\u201d Whatever that means.<\/p>\n

This new program \u201cwill directly touch fans of all 32 teams.\u201d Throughout the regular season, it looks like NFL teams will be surprising fans with free tickets. Hey, at least you don\u2019t have to pay for these?!<\/p>\n

Other hints at who\u2019ll be receiving these free Super Bowl Tickets? Based on the NFL’s recent cryptic announcement<\/a>, it could be any of the following folks:<\/p>\n

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