As we count down to 2019, Ticket Club is reviewing the past year in the entertainment industry. Follow along with our series as we explore the best of 2018’s live events, determined by internal sales data.
The Big Apple brings big entertainment. To little surprise, New York City ranked first on the list of 2018’s top entertainment cities in terms of both concerts and sports ticket sales.
New York has always been a hub for major concerts between Madison Square Garden and Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, as well as Radio City Music Hall, the Beacon Theatre and dozens of other intimate venues. Perhaps even more impressive than New York’s music scene is its sports culture. The city flourished thanks to professional sports teams like the Yankees, Knicks, Mets, Rangers, Giants, Jets and Red Bulls. Los Angeles followed closely behind in both concerts and sports, proving to be just as major of a market on the West Coast but not quite as successful as the Big Apple.
Differences run abound in the remainder of the Top 10 lists. Las Vegas – which hosted the iHeartRadio Music Festival this fall and several high-profile residency shows – captured the No. 3 spot for best concert city, followed by bustling Boston, Chicago and Philadelphia. Seattle squeaked in at No. 10, largely thanks to a pair of hometown concerts Pearl Jam performed at Safeco Field in August, which were the year’s two best-selling single concert dates.
On the sports side, Boston followed New York and LA with many local fans turning out in droves to catch the Red Sox’s record-breaking winning season and ninth World Series win, while Minneapolis pulled into the No. 4 spot as the host city of Super Bowl LII. Washington, DC earned entry into the year-end rankings after the Washington Capitals hoisted the Stanley Cup for the first time in franchise history. Kansas City followed closely behind, seemingly boosted by the Chiefs occupying three of the year’s 10 best-selling sports games.
See the Top 10 cities for both concerts and sports below.
Top Entertainment Cities – Concerts
- New York
- Los Angeles
- Las Vegas
- Boston
- Chicago
- Philadelphia
- Denver
- San Francisco
- Houston
- Seattle
Top Entertainment Cities – Sports
- New York
- Los Angeles
- Boston
- Minneapolis
- Dallas
- Washington, DC
- Kansas City
- Houston
- San Francisco
- Chicago
Want to see more posts like this? Check out the rest of our Year in Review series here.