Tennessee Basketball Announces Increase In Ticket Prices Beginning Next Season

Photo By Andrew Ferguson/Tennessee Athletics

Tennessee is raising men’s basketball ticket prices at Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center, the university announced on Tuesday morning.

The majority of fans will see a 6% increase in price of season tickets with some season-ticket holders in premium seating areas seeing a more dramatic increase. The most dramatic increase in season-ticket price will be for fans in premium seating that got grandfathered in to their current pricing model.

While Tennessee only announced the 6% increase in ticket price Tuesday, it is a 16% increase in ticket price in actuality. Back in September, Tennessee announced a new 10% increase in tickets for all sports to use as a “talent fee” that will directly go to paying players in this new era of college sports.

That talent fee did not go into effect for basketball season tickets this season but will along with this 6% increase for the 2025-26 season.

“As the collegiate model changes, we have to remain flexible,” Tennessee Director of Athletics Danny White said in a statement in September. “We have to continue leading the way. That connection between resources and competitiveness has never been tighter. Only now we have the ability to share these resources with our athletes. We can generate revenue that will go directly to our players. This will give our teams the best chance to be successful and bring championships home to Rocky Top.”

With the new increases, the season ticket plus donation cost varies between $390 and $5,825 per ticket depending on what part of the arena fans are purchasing season tickets.

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Tennessee announced the increased ticket prices a week after announcing renovations for its home basketball arena. The renovations, which will be done this offseason, include a new jumbotron, corner video boards, sound system and a premium “Riverside Club” on the floor level concourse at Food City Center.

The Vols sold the naming rights to Thompson-Boling Arena in August 2023 to Food City. The local supermarket brand is paying $20 million for the 10-year contract. At the time of the deal, Tennessee stated that they sold the naming rights to help pay for needed renovations to the arena.

Thompson-Boling Arena opened in 1987 and has been the home to Tennessee men’s and women’s basketball since. It held the same name for its first 36 years before adding the Food City Center name as well in 2023. The arena is also the home to the Tennessee volleyball team who started playing games there in 2008.

Tennessee men’s basketball has become one of the SEC’s top programs under head coach Rick Barnes. The Vols are 56-5 at home over the last three-plus seasons including a 12-1 record at Food City Center this season.

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