Basketball Australia, TEG Live release statement on seat expectations and ticket refunds
Basketball Australia and TEG Live released a joint statement on Thursday night's exhibition game featuring Team USA and the Australian Boomers, addressing the feedback received on seating and ticket refunds.
According to The Age, the ACCC had received hundreds of complaints as of Friday.
"We've had a couple hundred, that's a lot in our world to get in such a short time," ACCC chair, Rod Sims shared. "That was the number of complaints first thing this morning ... it's probably gone up since then."
Despite the state of unhappiness expressed by many fans, there were also others who enjoyed the game for what it was, a historical basketball event played by two teams. Ultimately, it still comes back to misaligned expectations that has cast a sour tone on the situation.
The Boomers lost the game 86-102, after a strong first half, and head coach Andrej Lemanis showed signs that he was firming up his playing rotations for the upcoming FIBA 2019 World Cup tournament in China.
Last night was the biggest basketball event ever staged in Australia, which is likely to be surpassed on Saturday when the Australian Boomers and USA Basketball battle it out again at Marvel Stadium.
Over 51,000 fans attended the event and it is worth noting the feedback to us has been strongly positive. Clearly there have been some fans that feel their expectations were not met on their purchased seats.
TEG Live and Marvel Stadium worked with a number of fans at the game to make alternative arrangements. Of the 11,000 fans who had purchased floor seating to last night’s game, only 200 people were relocated. They were relocated promptly without issue and just two refunds were requested.
Tickets for the event started from $69.90, which is reasonable and typical for a major international event. Ticket prices on the floor started from $149.90 in the rear sections, increasing in price the closer the seats were located to the court.
We appreciate that it was a different viewing experience than many basketball fans are used to because the event was staged within a traditional football stadium.
There were 14 massive video screens to augment the live action, including providing action replays, statistics and video pieces to keep the audience entertained.
These games feature the best available players that have been selected to represent their respective nations at the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup in China later this month.
The action on the court was fantastic as the Boomers took it up to USA Basketball for most of the game but the class of the current World Champions shone through in their 102-86 victory.
The pre-game entertainment was exhilarating and created a concert-style atmosphere, setting the scene for the on-court battle.
Basketball Australia and TEG Live are looking to a further history making encounter tomorrow at Marvel Stadium in front of an expected record crowd for a basketball game in Australia.
International Basketball Series Game Schedule
Australian Boomers vs USA Basketball, Saturday 24 August 2019, 2:00pm
USA Basketball vs Canada Basketball, Monday 26 August 2019, 7:30pm
All times are denoted in AEST, and games available via SBS and SBS On Demand.