Report: Jets at risk of relocation after losing thousands of season ticket holders

Earlier this week when the Winnipeg Jets were fighting for their playoff lives, the team's marketing department was planning their own battle against a declining customer base.

The Jets released an oddly timed video that... well... basically begged for people to buy season ticket packages.

Check it out:

That's... odd... right?

So, what gives?

Well, Jets chairman Mark Chipman isn't one to hold back words and he put it bluntly earlier this week saying that the team lost over 3,000 season ticket holders during the COVID-19 pause that it has yet to regain. Chipman gathered Winnipeg businesspeople to voice his concerns at Winnipeg's Chamber of Commerce Luncheon yesterday.

“That challenge has become far more daunting now that the effect of the pandemic is fully understood,” the Jets chairman, quoted in the Winnipeg Free Press, said. “After 10 years of consecutive sellouts, we now find ourselves in a very different world.

“You’re now figuring out why we are here today.”

Just 15% of the Jets season-ticket base is from businesses, Chipman pointed out, far less than the other Canadian teams.

And he claimed ticket prices are only lower in one Canadian city.

“As we enter another post-season … we thought this was an opportune time to humbly remind the community that we need your support,” he said.

It's not difficult to read between the lines of the team's promo video and Chipman's luncheon meeting. This team needs more ticket sales in order to sustain itself. Now, things have gone very well for the Jets in the 10+ years that they've been back in Winnipeg, but it's been clear from the start that this team would only be successful if it could fill its building. This is the first that we've heard of them having financial difficulty.

Frankly, I hope Jets fans step up and deliver on their team's request but at the same time I can't blame fans for staying away. Sure, the Jets have a good, exciting team, but NHL tickets are an extreme luxury these days and with costs going out of control everywhere there's no shame in tucking aside your money for a rainy day.