NFL cuts London ticket prices for Colts-Commanders to fill venue. Move irks fans who paid full price

LONDON (AP) — Andy Burrows calls the NFL’s ticketing strategy for Sunday’s game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium “a bit shambolic.”

After charging up to 245 pounds ($325) for tickets to see the Indianapolis Colts face the Washington Commanders , the league reduced prices in a bid to sell out the north London stadium, following slow sales in comparison to past years.

It stings for the fans who paid full price this summer when tickets first went on sale. And it comes as the league charges ahead with its international growth plan .

“They don’t care about the fans. As long as that place sells out and it looks good on TV, the NFL won’t care about us,” Burrows said. “And I’m not alone. I speak to fans every day.”

The league, facing the possibility of attendance at a Tottenham game slipping under 60,000 for the first time, recently slashed remaining tickets down to 79 pounds ($105) — its lowest 2026 category — including for some high-end seats.

Burrows spent 235 pounds ($312) for a lower-bowl seat near the 15-yard line during a pre-sale this summer, intent not to miss out on seeing the Commanders — his favorite team. An empty seat near him sold this past week for the discounted price.

The London native isn’t just any fan. He was an NFL international fan of the year in 2025 in recognition of his passionate support of the Commanders.

The NFL, which historically sees strong demand for its London games, recently emailed fans about the price reduction and made tickets available on UniDays, which posted offers of half-off tickets for university students.

“People now will just be like, ’I’m going to wait. Why should I buy a ticket when they get released?' ... That’s the risk they’ve done — depending on the games,” Burrows said.

Local fans like Matt Cullen, who has raised concerns about prices and “team fatigue" in London, say tickets should have been more affordable at the start.

“I understand the clamor to sell out, but it also shows that it wasn’t priced correctly in the first place,” said Cullen, a New York Jets fan who has said the league has “priced me out.”

The Colts-Commanders game had seen earlier price reductions. In an upper-tier section, for example, some seats started at 185 pounds ($245) and were down to 115 pounds ($152) in late August before dropping to 79 pounds.

Demand could also be impacted by the NFL holding three other games in Europe this season: Paris, Madrid and Munich will each host a game.

The NFL did not respond to requests for comment.

Ten days before the Colts-Commanders game, there appeared to be more than 2,000 tickets available, each priced at 79 pounds on Ticketmaster, the NFL’s official outlet for tickets.

The stadium’s capacity for Premier League soccer matches is 62,850, but it’s lower for NFL games because of logistical needs.

The NFL has staged 12 games at Tottenham following the opening of the stadium in 2019. Official attendance has never been below 60,000. The highest was 61,273 for the Jaguars-Bills game in 2023 when Buffalo fans packed the stadium.

Jonathan Fry, a lecturer in business and management at Aberystwyth University in Wales, said the price drop to 79 pounds “will either result in fans delaying purchasing when the tickets go on sale or that the NFL adjusts their ticket prices next year.”

“There could be a reputational risk for the NFL due to frustrated fans,” added Fry, who has researched event ticketing.

Longtime fans say the NFL’s decision to discontinue its “season tickets” program — which allowed bundle purchases for league-run London games at once — was a turning point in league-U.K. fan relations. Ticket prices had already been rising, but fans noted significant increases from 2024 to ’25 after the program was eliminated.

Fans have aired their complaints on NFL U.K.’s social media posts.

Still, it appears if the right team is in town, tickets will sell quickly.

Sunday marks the first of three London games this season. In Week 5, the Philadelphia Eagles face the Jacksonville Jaguars at Tottenham — and that game sold out right away, likely due to the popularity of the Eagles.

To boot, prices for the Eagles-Jags game were higher than the Colts-Commanders matchup.

The third London game features the Jaguars against the Houston Texans at Wembley Stadium on Oct. 18. The Jags — not the NFL — run the Wembley game and handle ticketing. Thousands of seats remain unsold three weeks ahead of that game.

See AP’s full NFL coverage here