Leeds United Football Club has announced a multi-year deal that makes SeatGeek and its enterprise platform the team’s ticketing provider beginning with the 2022-23 season. Leeds United plays in the Premier League, which is the top level of soccer in England, having earned promotion to the top tier in 2020 after boyuncing between the Championship and League One levels from 2004-2020 after having been in the top tier from 1992-2004. The club has captured three First Division/Premier League titles in its history, which dates back to 1919.
The deal makes Leeds United the 11th client for SeatGeek in the Premier League, joining Manchester City, Liverpool, Newcastle United, Leicester City and Aston Villa among others. SeatGeek has also made substantial inroads in the primary ticket market on the other side of the Atlantic with a leaguewide Major League Soccer deal. Other SeatGeek Enterprise clients include the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys, New Orleans Saints and Arizona Cardinals, the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers, Brooklyn Nets and New Orleans Pelicans, and theater groups in both London’s West End and Broadway. The company is in the process of a merger that will bring it public once the deal closes.
“Leeds United is a club with a rich history and a fantastic fanbase and we are delighted to be working closely with the club to drive a range of exciting initiatives that will benefit supporters and club staff. Technology is evolving rapidly, and it is important that the ticketing operation at a leading sports club can embrace innovative technology for the benefit of its supporter base. The entire management team at Leeds have a clear drive to deliver meaningful improvements and we look forward to a long and mutually beneficial partnership.”
Leeds’ choice to go with SeatGeek was reportedly based on the immediate benefits shown in prior integrations with other clubs in the market. The platform and its mobile-first approach appeal to a number of priorities that the club has for both current and future ticketing plans.
“We have been reviewing our ticketing platform and processes over a significant period and have engaged closely with our supporter groups in identifying a range of key initiatives that we believe will introduce significant efficiencies and improve the overall supporter experience,” says Leds United Head of Ticketing Katie Holmes in the announcement of the partnership. “With such high volumes of our ticket sales processed online via the website, it was a key area of our review and we are delighted with the improved look and feel and functionality that will be rolled out over the coming months. Our queue management platform for major sales has been updated and will provide supporters with more clarity around queue numbers, expected wait times and enables live updates to enhance communication to supporters.”
Leeds is currently 22 matches into the 2021-22 season, knotted with Brentford with 23 points. That puts them five points ahead of the current relegation cutoff by far behind the pace for the league crown or a spot in the Champions League, though many contests remain to catch up before regular play wraps up in May.
