University of Memphis Projects $750K Loss in Ticket Revenue Due to Stadium Renovation

The University of Memphis expects to lose $750,000 in ticket revenue this season because of ongoing renovations to Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium. 

Athletic director Ed Scott informed the Board of Trustees committee of the shortfall on Wednesday. 

The projections come after the Tigers opened their season with a win over North Alabama at a stadium that was at about half capacity due to the school having recently embarked on a $220 million renovation project a Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium that will take about two years to complete. 

According to the Commercial Appeal, the renovation leaves the stadium with about 25,000 fewer seats. Memphis announced a capacity of 25,849 on Saturday.

According to data Scott presented to the committee, the department is projecting a loss of 3,518 season tickets, which equates to $764,620 in loss revenue. There is also a loss of 144 parking spots, leading to $43,200.

Scott said he hopes to see an increase in the sale of single-game tickets. The department projected $900,000 in revenue from ticket sales, according to the data, but had made only $43,141 when the presentation was put together in August. The department had sold 10,181 season tickets, according to the presentation.

"The problem with single-game tickets is it's hard to forecast. If you look at the North Alabama game, we had just about 26,000 folks, just under 26,000. Some of that is due to our opponent, and some of that is due to how we're playing. My expectation is we'll see an influx of single-game tickets as we move forward, especially as the product that we put on the field is really, really good right now."