Commanders 2023 ticket sales have already topped last season

How much was former Commanders owner Daniel Snyder loathed in Washington? Apparently a great deal, according to ticket sale numbers recently published by Front Office Sports.

Just two days after the NFL approved a record $6.05 billion sale of the Commanders from Snyder to a Josh Harris-led ownership group that includes Magic Johnson, the team confirmed to Front Office Sports that ticket sales were up 52 percent and suite sales were on track to double from the previous season. 

“I invest to win,” Johnson told FOS. “And we want to change everything that has happened to this franchise. We see [Washington legends] in the front row. Not only did they win Super Bowls, they also made the community great. And we want to invite the community to be a part of what we’re building here.”

The Commanders also confirmed they have already surpassed the total revenue generated from ticket and suite sales last season, and they’ve sold 3,500 new season-ticket memberships since Snyder tentatively agreed to sell the franchise to the Harris group in April.

Washington’s season ticket packages, which average around $205, have already risen more than 20 percent from 2022. The Commanders had the fifth-cheapest average ticket price last season ($132), per TickPick — something team president Jason Wright told reporters in March he wanted the franchise to capitalize on.

The Commanders ranked last in the NFL in average attendance in 2022 (58,106), selling just 85.9 percent of capacity. The team ranked 31st in average attendance the previous season (52,751) and 20th in 2019 (65,488) before the COVID pandemic.

“Tickets go for as cheap as $400 for the entire season on the upper level,” Wright said. “We need to think about how to get people to buy into what’s already a very low price point. It’s hard to think that further drops in price, when we’re already in a wealthy market and we’re bottom of the league in prices."