Female artists and athletes had a big year

Female artists and athletes stole the spotlight in 2023, according to StubHub Wrapped StubHub’s Year in Live Experiences report published yesterday.

Women had a big year. The four leading female musical acts this year – Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, Adele, and P!NK – collectively more than tripled the sales of the entire top ten artists in 2022. They were led by Swift’s Eras Tour, which was the biggest in StubHub’s history.

• Swift’s influence also extended to the NFL, where sales for Chiefs home games more than tripled after the pop/country star’s first appearance in support of Travis Kelce.

Elsewhere, overall ticket sales for the 2023 National Women’s Soccer League rose 101% from the prior year, WNBA sales rose 92%, and women’s tennis saw a 30% bump in attendance.

Big-name athletes and coaches were also major draws. Lionel Messi’s inaugural MLS season corresponded with a 160% year-over-year increase in overall league attendance, and boosted Inter Miami from the seventh-highest selling team to No. 1 by a wide margin. And, in college football, Colorado head football coach Deion Sanders drove a 15x annual increase in preseason ticket sales, propelling the Buffaloes to the No. 10 overall CFB team in terms of demand.