A new study has found that while the average adult can expect to spend more than $3,500 on sporting events per year, only one in five Australians is prepared to pay for it.
Key points:Sports fans spend about $1,400 a year on ticket purchases in AustraliaThe study also found that Australians are more likely to get a discount than othersThe average adult in Australia spends about $3.1 million per year on sports, according to the survey.
The research, conducted by the Centre for the Study of Popular Culture at Griffith University, found that only one-quarter of Australians were prepared to spend at least $3 million on sporting tickets, with more than half saying they could do so with a discount.
“This suggests that there is not enough awareness of how much we can expect Australians to spend on sports in the near future, particularly in light of the impact the ACA has had on ticket prices,” said the study’s author, Associate Professor Paul Gee, of Griffith University’s School of Social Work.
“We think that many Australians have not seen any savings on the value of their tickets in the past 10 years, and may be unaware that their sports-related spending is a financial burden.”
“Sports is a huge social activity in Australia, and people are keen to have the most value they can get for their money, which may be the result of not paying enough attention to the value they pay for tickets,” he said.
The survey found that almost half of Australians (46 per cent) thought they were aware of how expensive they were to attend sporting events, compared with 19 per cent of Australians who were unaware of how they were being charged.
About a third (32 per cent), of those surveyed thought they could have been charged less if they had used their credit card.
But the researchers said Australians were more likely than other people to see a discount if they used their card.
“Our findings suggest that Australians do pay less for sporting events than they should, but this is likely to be offset by discounts for sporting tickets,” Professor Gee said.
“Even though Australians are aware of the cost of their sport, they are less likely to pay more than they could for other activities.”‘
Sport is a massive social activity’The study found that when Australians were told that the average price of tickets was $1.99, only 15 per cent believed they were paying too much.
“It’s the price of a few hours’ worth of entertainment, and this is clearly not reflected in the average Australian’s purchasing decisions,” Associate Professor Gie said.
A similar study last year found that fewer than a third of Australians expected to be able to afford the price they were currently paying.
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