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STUBHUB’S 2023 COLLEGE FOOTBALL PREVIEW

Sales up conference-wide, Alabama returns to #1 spot and Colorado’s offseason shake up drives ticket sales
Multiple newcomers to the most in-demand list reflect last season’s strong performances, while Ohio State drives the most sales on the road
As fans gear up for what has already been a riveting start to college football, StubHub, the world's most trusted ticket marketplace, analyzed ticket trends to reveal the top in-demand football programs, most popular games, hottest trending teams and more. Alabama reclaims the #1 position on StubHub’s list of in-demand teams for the third time, and, at #2, Michigan is the Big 10 frontrunner, after a defining season that now puts them ahead of Ohio State in total sales.


”This is likely to be the last season of college football as we know it, with conferences realigning at a rapid pace and playoff expansion on the horizon. We predict that ticket sales will start to reflect changes in how fans travel, create new rivalries and spotlight more teams across the country.”

“Sales are trending up almost 50% over last season and we’re seeing the most preseason sales of the past five years - Colorado leads the charge with the biggest jump in sales.”

— Adam Budelli, spokesperson for StubHub





✭ StubHub's Top In-Demand College Football Teams of 2023
  1. Alabama Crimson Tide
  2. Michigan Wolverines
  3. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
  4. Penn State Nittany Lions
  5. Tennessee Volunteers
  6. Georgia Bulldogs
  7. Auburn Tigers
  8. Florida State Seminoles
  9. Texas A&M Aggies
  10. Colorado Buffaloes
Based on cumulative StubHub ticket sales as of August 22 for the 2023 season.




✭ StubHub’s Top In-Demand College Football Games of 2023
  1. Ohio State Buckeyes at Notre Dame Fighting Irish on September 23 

  2. Ohio State Buckeyes at Michigan Wolverines on November 25 

  3. Texas Longhorns at Alabama Crimson Tide on September 9 

  4. Iowa Hawkeyes at Penn State Nittany Lions on September 23

  5. Florida State Seminoles vs. LSU Tigers* on September 3

  6. USC Trojans at Notre Dame Fighting Irish on October 14

  7. West Virginia Mountaineers at Penn State Nittany Lions on September 2 

  8. Tennessee Volunteers at Alabama Crimson Tide on October 21 

  9. Ole Miss Rebels at Alabama Crimson Tide on September 23

  10. Army Black Knights vs. Navy Midshipmen* on December 9

Based on cumulative StubHub ticket sales as of August 22 for the 2023 season.  *Neutral site game


Top three teams highlight diversity in the Power 5

• At #1, Alabama brings the SEC back to the top.

  • #1 for the third time, the team ousts the Buckeyes, who held #1 last year, and rises from their #2 position last season.

  • Previous years at #1: 2021 + 2018.

  • Alabama has the 10th highest growth in sales - #10 on the trending list - with sales up 50% compared to the same time last season.

  • The team is outselling #2 Michigan by 24%, despite having a smaller stadium.

  • Alabama hosts three of the top 10 highest-selling games.

  • They host more of the top 10 games than any other team.

  • The games include: Texas (#3 game), TN (#8) and Ole Miss (#9).

  • The Crimson Tide drive demand on the road - they boast the second biggest spike in ticket price when on the road - average price of ticket sales spike an average of 76% when the team visits.

• Michigan, representing the Big 10, lands at #2.

  • The team is up five spots from #7, compared to last year at the season start.

  • They outsell all teams based on number of tickets sold and number of transactions.

  • They outsell their rivals, Ohio State, by 180%, who fall just short of the top 10 at #11.

  • The Wolverines and Buckeyes clash in the #2 hottest-selling game of the season.

  • This is up from #5 last year.

  • The game has double the sales of last year’s same rivalry matchup.

  • The team drives the third largest spike in ticket prices of all teams, when on the road.

• At #3, Independent Notre Dame’s highly-anticipated 2023 home schedule is boosting demand.

  • The team is driving twice the sales compared to the start of the 2022 season.

  • Notre Dame is hosting two of the top ten most in-demand games.

  • #1: Hosting Ohio State is the most in-demand game of the season.

  • This game is driving 30% more sales than the #2 highest-selling game of the year - when the Buckeyes visit Michigan - but the average price of tickets sold to see the Buckeyes take on the Irish is 15% lower.

  •  #6: The always popular game against their rival USC, where football fans can see Heisman winner Caleb Williams in action.

  • This rivalry game didn’t make the top 50 games at this time last season.

  • The game is driving nearly 7x the sales of this time last season.



“The SEC continues to dominate as a conference, outselling the Big 10 teams by 45%. The Tide lead the charge by opening up the season leading ticket sales, hosting three of the season’s most in-demand games, and commanding sales on the road, but it’s Michigan that boasts the most amount of tickets sold given they house the largest stadium in college football.”

— Adam Budelli, spokesperson for StubHub





✭ StubHub's Top Trending Teams of 2023
  1. Colorado Buffaloes +1668%

  2. Florida State Seminoles +450%

  3. Tennessee Volunteers +242%

  4. Penn State Nittany Lions +162%

  5. Wisconsin Badgers +135%

  6. Michigan Wolverines +117%

  7. Auburn Tigers +102%

  8. Clemson Tigers +99%

  9. Notre Dame Fighting Irish +96%

  10. Alabama Crimson Tide +58%

Based on Power 5 teams with the highest rate of increase in cumulative StubHub ticket sales for the 2023 season, as of August 22, in comparison to sales ahead of the 2023 season. Number indicates the percentage increase in ticket sales.


Colorado, Florida State and Tennessee see so much growth, they debut on the Top 10

• Colorado is the clear winner.

  • Buffs are trending at a 15x increase in sales from last year.

  • Their game hosting Nebraska on September 9 is their most in-demand game, coming in at #17 for most in-demand games of the season.

  • They beat out Ohio State to land as the #10 most in-demand team with 15% more total sales than the Buckeyes.

Tennessee ranks highest in top 10 amongst newcomers

• The Vols land at #5 in the top in-demand teams as the #3 trending team.

  • They’re up 8 spots from #13 at the start of the season last year.

  • The team’s sales have more than doubled from the 2022 preseason.

  • They appear in one game in the top 10, when they travel to Alabama.

  • Their game against Texas A&M at home on October 14 is their #1 game of the season, landing at #13 of the highest-selling games overall.


Sales in the Big 10 Climb

• The Big 10 experiences 35% growth in sales over last year, on par with the SEC.

• Penn State, Wisconsin and Michigan lead the charge for the Big 10.

  • Penn State has seen the biggest growth, but Wisconsin at #5 and Michigan at #6 - also #2 in overall sales - give the conference a big boost.



“It’s hard to talk about the upcoming season without talking about the huge changes happening at Colorado under Deion Sanders. The Buffs drive the biggest sales increase from last season as fans place faith in this new team - ticket sales have increased 15 times over.”

— Adam Budelli, spokesperson for StubHub





✭ StubHub’s Top Traveling College Football Teams of 2023
  1. Ohio State Buckeyes +92%

  2. Alabama Crimson Tide +76%

  3. Georgia Bulldogs +73%

  4. Michigan Wolverines +73%

  5. Oklahoma Sooners +71%

  6. Texas Longhorns +50%

  7. Notre Dame Fighting Irish +42%

  8. LSU Tigers +37%

  9. Iowa Hawkeyes +34%

  10. Florida State Seminoles +30%

Difference in average ticket prices for teams hosting these opponents compared to the rest of a team’s home games as of August 22 for the 2023 season.


Ohio State dominates demand on the road

• While they narrowly miss the top 10 most in-demand teams list at #11, Ohio State drives the biggest increase on average ticket prices as the away team, seeing a nearly 92% spike.

  • The two top-selling games of the season happen when the Buckeyes visit Notre Dame (#1 game) and Michigan (#2).

  • Ohio State at Notre Dame on September 23 is the highest selling matchup of the season.

  • The team’s sales have more than doubled from the 2022 preseason.



“Big games at Notre Dame and Michigan have Ohio State’s fanbase rallied to support their team in these electric environments on the road. Anytime Ohio State is the visiting team, we see a 92% uptick in average ticket prices.”

— Adam Budelli, spokesperson for StubHub



For interview requests or questions, contact pr@stubhub.com