Italian clubs and fans of Italian football more widely have been enjoying a wonderful season in the three European competitions with six teams in the quarter-finals of the Champions League, the Europa League and the Europa Conference League.
Of those that began, only Lazio have fallen as they were beaten in the Europa League round of 16 by AZ Alkmaar. Inter, Napoli and AC Milan are still in the Champions League, AS Roma and Juventus are still in the Europa League and Fiorentina are still in the Conference League.
Having three teams in the quarter-finals of the Champions League was very unexpected for Serie A, and it means that the city of Milan is playing host to two massive games in the coming weeks, and tickets are already shifting.
How much are Inter and AC Milan charging?
Many are surprised to see quite how much of a difference there is between Inter and Milan’s ticket prices for this round, as reported by La Gazzetta dello Sport. It also exhibits how much autonomy the two clubs have despite sharing a stadium.
The latter stages of the Champions League is often a chance for clubs to exercise something of a cash grab given the demand is massively heightened. Inter are heading down the cheaper route as the lowest price for a ticket to see them take on Benfica at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza is €45. For Milan’s home game against Napoli, the cheapest ticket is €59.
The most expensive ticket at Inter is €285 in the rosso centrale, but that same seat will cost a Milan fan €389. The orange ring is where the differences are stark. There is a difference of up to €70 in some orange sections of the stadium with others having a difference of €10, €20 or €30. The Rossoneri, therefore, stand to earn much more from the matchday than the Nerazzurri.
High prices aren’t stopping AC Milan fans
There is no sign that the expensive ticket prices are going to be suppressing turnout with around 37,000 tickets already having been sold for Milan’s home game against Napoli. Seeing as both Inter and Milan sell out almost every single home game, it is not a surprise that fans are still stumping up the cash.
It is the first time since 2012 that the Rossoneri have been in the quarter-finals of the Champions League so fans are desperate to see their team on such a big stage, even if they are the underdogs against the runaway Serie A leaders.
For Inter, it is the first time since 2010/11 that they have gone this far in the Champions League.
