For nearly six0 years, the Selkow family name was synonymous with Philadelphia 76ers basketball. Don Selkow first purchased season tickets in 1968, securing two seats just a few rows behind the visitor bench at a cost of $6.50 each. Over the decades, generations of the family witnessed basketball legends from George McGinnis and Julius Erving to Charles Barkley and Allen Iverson. But by 2026, the cost for each ticket to each game had climbed past $600. Faced with mounting expenses and a daughter approaching graduate school, Aaron Selkow—who began attending games as a baby sitting on his father’s lap—made the agonizing decision to let their season tickets go.
Instead of calling his father directly, Aaron wrote down his thoughts in a letter that was later published as an op-ed in the Philadelphia Inquirer. The personal lament struck a chord with sports fans across the region and nationwide who faced similar financial realities across Major League Baseball, the National Football League, the National Basketball Association, and the National Hockey League. According to the Consumer Price Index, the cost of attending live sports has surged by 123% since 2000, outpacing general inflation and putting traditional ticket ownership out of reach for ordinary supporters.
This pricing squeeze is built directly into the architecture of modern professional sports. When the Selkows first held season tickets, the 76ers played at the Spectrum, a modest 1960s-era arena. The franchise later moved across the street to the sprawling Xfinity Mobile Center in 1996, a multi-level venue that introduced more plush amenities, clubs, and restaurants, and recently completed a $400 million renovation. While such multi-level complexes often boast expansive footprints, data analyzed by the CBS News Data Team reveals that stadiums and arenas built across America’s major sports cities since 2000 have collectively reduced overall seating capacity by nearly 90,000 seats.
Venue operators have systematically traded general seating for high-margin premium offerings, including private suites, boxes, and club-level seating. In Buffalo, the NFL’s new Highmark Stadium stands as the smallest among the league’s 32 teams with a capacity of approximately 60,000—marking a 16% decrease from Bills Stadium’s capacity of over 71,000. The facility incorporates two suite levels, and the team sold more than 3,600 club suite licenses for $65 million. Similarly, Globe Life Field, the home of MLB’s Texas Rangers, shrank by more than 16% compared to its predecessor, The Ballpark at Arlington, while adding over 130 suites and more than 3,000 club seats.
Major stadium renovations have produced the same capacity reductions. Angels Stadium in Anaheim lost 19,076 seats during a 1998 conversion, Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium eliminated 10,692 seats in a 2015–2016 remodel, and Chicago’s Soldier Field cut 5,444 seats during its 2003 renovation. Looking ahead, franchises including the Chicago Bears, Kansas City Chiefs, Dallas Stars, Washington Commanders, and Philadelphia 76ers are planning new stadiums and arenas over the next five years.
Industry analysts note that these facility changes reflect rising operational expenses across the entire sports ecosystem. Mike Vorkunov, a sports business writer for The Athletic and , points out that the financial burden of running a competitive franchise extends far beyond player salaries. Costs for coaching staffs, general managers, front-office personnel, team travel, global scouting operations, and research and development have all escalated significantly. Furthermore, modern franchise owners face unprecedented acquisition costs, paying billions of dollars to purchase teams and feeling increased pressure to run profitable operations rather than absorbing small deficits as independent family-owned businesses once did.
Even as teams prioritize corporate buyers and high-spending patrons, sports executives face the ongoing challenge of maintaining a connection with the returning customers who formed the foundation of their fanbases. Although the Selkows no longer occupy their familiar seats as the 76ers chase their first championship since 1983, they remain dedicated supporters, planning to watch together if the team reaches the NBA Finals.
