Bucs Fans Being Sued...by Bucs?

http://sptimes.com/2005/02/13/Bucs/Cancel_on_us__huh_We_.shtml

What do you guys think of this?

Better read the fine print I guess. If it is a valid contract then the Bucs hold all the cards here. While I do think it is dumb to hold any fan hostage that doesn't want their seats, but you do need to read your contract when you first get these seats. The Bucs were covering their butts for any down years with that clause. Is it sad that they have to sue people to keep their seats? Absolutely yes. Legally the Bucs may be covered, but it is bad from a PR standpoint.

Better read the fine print I guess. If it is a valid contract then the Bucs hold all the cards here. While I do think it is dumb to hold any fan hostage that doesn't want their seats, but you do need to read your contract when you first get these seats. The Bucs were covering their butts for any down years with that clause. Is it sad that they have to sue people to keep their seats? Absolutely yes. Legally the Bucs may be covered, but it is bad from a PR standpoint.

I agree, at first I was like damn, this is so wrong. Then when they explained the whole contract thing I was like ok, I can see where the team is coming from. Would they actually sue the fans, probably not, but they certainly can if they wanted to.

I guess the simple lesson here is, ALWAYS read the fine print.

Must we never forget....this is a business.

shouldn't there be a clause in the contract that allows the ticket holder to transfer his remaining contract or something. Situations like lose of income, injury, or it being tickets for a team not really worth watching the past 2 years.

pretty silly to threaten legal action on a fan...however, it is a business....

however, giving the guy 30 minutes to look over a 10 year contract is a bit absurd too...not using this as an excuse, but the team should be giving these people a day or 2 before they hand over the equivalent of 75 grand...

and the opposite goes true up here...people going to FedEx are paying for seats that has little to no view the field...

I thought there were no guaranteed contracts in the NFL? ;)

Most teams have similar clauses in their contracts. The question becomes, who would want to enforce those clauses? The press would excoriate any team which actually sued their fans, and it would be disasterous for public relations.

It's unlikely to happen here, with the long waiting list for season tickets, but say 10,000 ticket holders decided to break their contracts, and there weren't takers for the tickets. A team would be stuck with not only thousands of dollars in lost revenue, but that many more tickets to sell to avoid blackouts.

It is sort of interesting to note though that the Bucs have been involved in a lawsuit with their fans before:

http://www.sportslawnews.com/archive/articles%201999/Bucsupdate.htm

This was eventually settled

It's unlikely to happen here, with the long waiting list for season tickets, but say 10,000 ticket holders decided to break their contracts, and there weren't takers for the tickets. A team would be stuck with not only thousands of dollars in lost revenue, but that many more tickets to sell to avoid blackouts.
The Redskins practice this to. I was late last year with my money and the threat came to me. We will sue, please read the contract. It is a business and they do have the right. I personally do not agree with this but this is the way it is done.