Tickets still available as 'Messi Mania' visits CF Montreal; club expects a sellout
Tickets are still available for "Messi Mania" in Montreal -- if you're willing to pay up.
Montreal hosts Lionel Messi's Inter Miami CF in Major League Soccer action Saturday at Stade Saputo as the global icon makes his first professional trip to Canada.
As of late Friday afternoon multiple sections at the 19,619-capacity venue had more than 40 seats remaining (not including resale tickets) and one section had more than 75.
The cheapest ticket available was a single seat at $325, otherwise tickets were priced at $495 and higher, going up to $729. There is no guarantee Messi plays, but the 36-year-old Argentine superstar is healthy and expected to feature in the match.
"I'm not surprised to see the fact that there are still tickets left a day before the event," Jonah Presser, director of communications for CF Montreal supporters' group 1642MTL, said Friday.
"It shows that CF Montreal overestimated their market in terms of being able to sell out the venue at the prices that they sold the tickets."
CF Montreal president Gabriel Gervais said Friday, however, that he expects a sellout come Saturday.
"In normal times, we usually sell a large percentage of individual tickets 48 hours before the match," Gervais said. "We are confident we'll see a full house."
Resale company Vivid Seats said Saturday's match was trending as the "hottest" Miami ticket this season with an average cost of $465.
Messi -- widely considered one of the greatest players of all time -- took the North American soccer scene by storm when he left Europe to join Miami last year, filling stadiums despite the astronomical prices wherever he went.
In February, two CF Montreal supporters' groups -- 1642MTL and Collectif Impact Montreal -- took issue with the rise in ticket prices for the Inter Miami match. The groups stated the club intended to charge $449 plus taxes in the designated supporters' section, a departure from the usual $30 to $35 pricing.
"The prices haven't budged and we've said since the beginning that price has been the main detractor for people to be able to come to the game," Presser said. "It's not going to change day to day that a normal person is going to have $450 to spend from one day to another unless they win the lottery."
CF Montreal announced on Jan. 18 that it had sold out 15,000 season tickets -- starting at $444 -- for the first time since the club joined MLS in 2012. The club then released a six-game bundle -- which included Inter Miami's visit -- starting at $750. That package sold out on Feb. 14.
Elsewhere in Canada, tickets start at $329, including taxes and fees, for Miami's meeting with the Vancouver Whitecaps on May 25. Toronto FC only had resale tickets available on Ticketmaster for Miami's BMO Field visit on Oct. 5, starting at $333.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 10, 2024.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More Canadians are moving to the U.S. Here's one of the main reasons, according to an immigration expert
Recent data from the U.S. census revealed that more than 126,000 people moved from Canada to the U.S. in 2022. An expert said that one of the main reasons for this move is the cost of living.
Bus carrying Quebec tourists crashes in Cuba, leaving 1 dead and 26 injured
One person is dead and 26 were injured after a bus carrying Quebec tourists was involved in a collision in Cuba on Sunday.
Her gut was producing alcohol. Doctors didn't believe her
For two years doctors told her she was an alcoholic. Then they realized her gut was making alcohol from carbohydrates, a rare condition called auto-brewery syndrome.
Here's how far B.C. drivers must keep from cyclists, pedestrians under new law
A new law protecting cyclists and pedestrians in British Columbia takes effect Monday, establishing minimum distances that drivers must keep from so-called vulnerable road users.
Forest bathing: What is it is and why some Alberta doctors recommend it
Many people are familiar with the benefits of being in nature, but forest therapy goes a step further than a simple walk in the woods.
Poilievre says same-sex marriage 'will remain legal when I am prime minister, full stop'
Facing scrutiny over comments one of his MPs made, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says if he become prime minister, he will uphold same sex marriage rights, 'full stop.'
'They need this protection': Trudeau gov't re-offers $1.5M for enhanced Pride security in Canada
For the second year, the federal government is offering up to $1.5M to Pride organizations across the country to fund enhanced security measures, amid a continued rise in anti-LGBTQ2S+ hate.
Elected leaders should read Supreme Court decisions before speaking, says top justice
The chief justice of the Supreme Court is sending a warning about the risks elected officials run by reacting to decisions from the court without first having read the rulings themselves.
Prospective jurors in Hunter Biden's firearms case questioned on gun rights, addiction, politics
A federal gun case against U.S. President Joe Biden’s son Hunter opened Monday with jury selection, following the collapse of a plea deal that would have avoided the spectacle of a trial so close the 2024 election.