People are price-gouging for what should be free tickets to Maple Leaf Square
The crowds, smoke, and atmosphere of Maple Leaf Square (or Jurassic Park when the Raptors are playing) creates an iconic experience for any big-time sports fan. Passes for these Toronto Maple Leafs tailgate parties are free to those lucky enough to claim them, but it's not necessarily an easy task.
And like any in-demand item, passes to these tailgate parties are now appearing online for resale at exorbitant prices, though anyone purchasing one of these passes could be in for a rude surprise when they arrive and meet the crowds outside Scotiabank Arena.
According to Scotiabank Arena's details for the regular events, fans can obtain a limit of four passes per person, but an information page for the tailgate events makes it clear that "each pass is a single-use QR code that admits one person and is non-transferable."
But that hasn't stopped online sellers from selling their passes to purchasers, who may not have gotten the memo that these tickets are both free and non-transferable.
Tickets to attend the Leafs' upcoming first-round Game 7 versus the Tampa Bay Lightning are selling on sites like eBay for almost $80 CAD, though it's unclear what will happen to fans who break the rules and buy these passes second-hand.
DO 👏🏻 NOT 👏🏻PAY 👏🏻PPL 👏🏻FOR 👏🏻TAILGATE 👏🏻TIX 👏🏻THEY 👏🏻WERE 👏🏻FREE 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
— T 💙🤍 (@macbananas) May 13, 2022
A representative for MLSE tells blogTO that "No Tailgate passes cannot be sold for any value. Passes are free on leafstailgate.com."
Though fans looking to get into the square for Game 7 through conventional means are already out of luck, as Scotiabank Arena has confirmed that no more passes are available for outdoor viewing of the series' deciding game on Saturday.
Jack Landau
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