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(NewsNation) — Concert tickets have gotten more expensive in recent years, but Live Nation's CEO insists they're still a bargain compared with sports.
"The concert is underpriced, has been for a long time," Live Nation CEO Michael Rapino said recently at CNBC and Boardroom’s "Game Plan" conference.
Rapino argued that music is "underappreciated," noting that fans treat sports spending as a status symbol.
"I always joke, sports, it's like a badge of honor to spend 70 grand for a Knicks courtside," he said. "They'd beat me up if we charge $800 for Beyonce."
He thinks the industry still has "a lot of runway left" on pricing and said that the average concert price is $72: "Try going to a Lakers game for that."
Industry data, however, suggests top-tier shows cost far more.
In 2024, the average ticket price for the top 100 touring artists was $135.92 — up 41% from $96.17 in 2019, according to Pollstar, a live entertainment trade publication.
Tickets at smaller venues like clubs ($43.95) and theaters ($75.09) were cheaper, but stadium ($128.54) and arena ($98.78) shows — where stars like Taylor Swift perform — drove the averages higher.
Rapino acknowledged that ticket prices are rising but attributed it to greater production costs and investment in the fan experience.
"We just did the Beyoncé tour, she's got 62 transport trucks outside — that's a Super Bowl she's putting on every night," he said. "Ten years ago, there might have been 12 trucks."
Most artists are even sacrificing margin to elevate their shows, Rapino said, adding: "I've never met an artist that said, 'How rich can I get tonight?'"
Rapino's comments haven't landed well online, with many expressing frustration at concert ticket prices they already see as too high.
"Apparently concerts are only for rich people now too," one Reddit user wrote.
Live Nation merged with Ticketmaster in 2010 and believes itself to be the largest live entertainment company in the world. That dominance has also made it a frequent target of consumer ire over consolidation in the live events industry.
Last year, the Justice Department filed an antitrust suit accusing Live Nation of operating as a monopoly. The company has denied wrongdoing, and the case is still ongoing.
More recently, the Federal Trade Commission and a bipartisan group of state attorneys general sued Live Nation and its subsidiary, Ticketmaster, saying they are forcing consumers to pay more to see live events through a variety of illegal tactics.
The FTC last week accused Live Nation and Ticketmaster of selling "illegally harvested tickets" at a "substantial markup" in the secondary market, causing consumers to pay "significantly more than the face value of the ticket. "
Ticketmaster controls 80% or more of major U.S. concert venues’ primary ticketing, according to the FTC. From 2019 to 2024 alone, consumers spent more than $82.6 billion purchasing tickets from Ticketmaster.
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