The holy grail is upon them.
For the primary time in franchise historical past, and within the yr after a world celebrity led them to a World Sequence championship, the Dodgers will hit 4 million in attendance this season.
The Dodgers have led the key league in attendance yearly since 2013, the primary full season underneath the Guggenheim possession group chaired by Mark Walter. In press releases, the Dodgers often word the group has “the highest cumulative fan attendance in Major League Baseball history.”
But the 4 million barrier has been an elusive milestone. Lon Rosen, the Dodgers’ government vp and chief advertising and marketing officer, stated the group would formally go 4 million tickets bought on Sunday, within the common season finale.
“We’re proud of the accomplishment,” Rosen stated.
No main league group has hit 4 million for the reason that New York Mets and Yankees in 2008, the ultimate season of Shea Stadium and the previous Yankee Stadium, respectively. The Yankees additionally bought 4 million in 2005-07. The one different groups to do it: the Toronto Blue Jays (1991-93) and Colorado Rockies (1993).
No group in addition to the Dodgers can hit 4 million any extra. The Mets, Yankees and Rockies all moved into smaller stadiums; the Blue Jays downsized theirs.
A group that hits 4 million should common 49,383 tickets bought per sport. The Arizona Diamondbacks play within the stadium with the second-largest capability within the majors: 48,330. The Dodgers’ common getting into play Thursday: 49,589.
The Dodgers bought 3.97 million tickets in 2019, coming off back-to-back World Sequence appearances, and three.94 million final yr. They haven’t bought fewer than 3.7 million underneath Guggenheim possession, except for the 2 seasons with pandemic-related attendance restrictions.
“We’re a very successful franchise, and I attribute it all to the players,” Rosen stated. “We have incredible players. We have very popular players.”
Technically, the Dodgers bought 4 million tickets in 1982, former Dodgers vp of selling Barry Stockhamer advised The Instances in 2010. Beneath Nationwide League guidelines on the time, groups have been required to announce what number of followers really confirmed up, not what number of tickets have been bought. The Dodgers’ attendance that yr was reported as 3.6 million.
The Dodgers’ dominance on the sphere underneath Walter and his companions — two World Sequence titles, 4 World Sequence appearances and 13 consecutive playoff berths — has been accompanied by dominance on the enterprise aspect.
In essence, at a time when cable and satellite tv for pc revenues are collapsing, the Dodgers can finance their participant payroll both from ticket income or from native tv income. The Dodgers’ payroll is about $340 million this season.
The Dodgers’ SportsNet LA contract with Constitution Communications, the father or mother firm of Spectrum, pays a mean of $334 million per season. Nevertheless, the contract began in 2014 and extends by 2038, with the annual cost rising annually — to greater than $500 million by the tip of the deal, in response to individuals conversant in the deal however not approved to reveal its phrases.
The Dodgers generated $4.29 million in ticket income final season for every regular-season dwelling sport, in response to an inside league doc first reported by Sportico and confirmed by The Instances. That totaled $343.2 million for 80 dwelling video games final season, at a mean ticket worth of about $80.
Because the Dodgers compete with the San Diego Padres for the Nationwide League West title, the Dodgers’ SportsNet LA contract exacerbates the monetary disparity. The Padres have bought out 66 of 75 dwelling video games this season and have bought extra tickets than any group in addition to the Dodgers and Yankees, however the Padres have reduce payroll over the previous two years, following the chapter and subsequent implosion of the father or mother firm of what was then known as Bally Sports activities.
In August, the Padres advised season ticket holders their common worth enhance for 2026 can be 7% — the fifth consecutive season with a rise, in response to the San Diego Union-Tribune. The Padres raised costs by a mean of 20% for the 2022 season and 18% for the 2023 season, the Union-Tribune reported.
Rosen declined to debate how a lot the Dodgers had raised the worth of season tickets for 2026, though a number of followers advised The Instances their seats had elevated within the vary of 20%. Rosen stated the Dodgers’ renewals have been “going well.”
The Dodgers nonetheless have payments to pay past participant payroll, in fact: a sturdy employees in each baseball operations and enterprise operations, Dodger Stadium operations and upkeep, minor league operations, income sharing, and greater than $100 millon in luxurious taxes amongst them.
Additionally they make cash in methods in addition to tickets and SportsNet LA, amongst them nationwide broadcast income, nationwide and native merchandise income, company sponsorships, and stadium parking and concessions.
“We put the money back into the team,” Rosen stated. “Our owners have done that from day one.”
With Clayton Kershaw, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman, the Dodgers already had a star-studded roster. The addition of Shohei Ohtani, and the vacationers that comply with him from Japan, supercharged the Dodgers’ enterprise and eventually vaulted the group over the magic 4 million mark.
It’s not simply that the followers come out to see a winner, Kershaw stated. It’s that the followers present an edge that helps hold the group a winner.
“Without question,” Kershaw stated. Any time you play in entrance of a packed home at dwelling, it’s vital. We play day by day. It’s onerous to create power typically, simply since you play a lot. I believe having the followers behind us day by day and seeing that packed home offers you that little little bit of added power.
“You play a day game on the road somewhere, and there’s nobody there, it’s hard to mimic. Even though it is a big league game, there are levels to this. Playing at home in front of our fans is definitely a home-field advantage.”
