NEW YORK & SALT LAKE CITY--(BUSINESS WIRE)--SeatGeek, the technology platform that is transforming the live-event experience for fans, teams, and venues, today announced its partnership with Real Salt Lake (RSL) of Major League Soccer. As the Club's Official Ticketing Provider, SeatGeek's ticketing platform will create the ultimate matchday experience for fans starting with the 2023 season. RSL becomes the eighth MLS team to choose SeatGeek as its platform, alongside 50% of the English Premier League clubs in the U.K.
With the industry's highest Net Promoter Score (NPS) as of September 2021, SeatGeek's platform gives Real Salt Lake fans and supporters an experience that matches the passion and dedication of the Supporter Section known as The Riot, within America First Field. The award-winning app puts the singing, chanting, drumming, tifo unfurling, and flag-waving environment at a fan's fingertips through an easy process that helps them find that perfect seat. After tickets are purchased, SeatGeek's in-app Rally widgets help fans find driving directions, weather updates, and score upgraded experiences.
"When the team was purchased earlier this year, our new ownership group made it clear that we would work with technology partners that put our fans' and our supporter groups' experiences at the forefront," said Real Salt Lake President, John Kimball. "SeatGeek has become the top choice for some of the most respected clubs and leagues across the globe, and we're eager for our fans and supporters to experience all it can do."
As an end-to-end live event platform, the backend technology SeatGeek provides to clients is just as important as the front end. SeatGeek's box office technology is built on Unify - a modern and intuitive client interface that allows teams, theaters, and arenas to create, sell and manage access to their live entertainment ecosystem. Unify enables clients to create new user experiences, offer more robust inventory, and capture better economics.
"In the past, there was a limited choice when it came to choosing a ticketing platform, which almost made it an afterthought to the overall event-going experience," said Jeff Ianello, EVP of Client Partnerships at SeatGeek. "Now, forward-thinking clubs like RSL see the value of using their technology to surpass the expectations of their supporters."
SeatGeek sports a rolodex of over 200 clients worldwide, including eight Major League Soccer clubs and half of the English Premier League's clubs - including Liverpool F.C. and Manchester City F.C. SeatGeek also recently announced a partnership with United Soccer League, where ten clubs use its ticketing technology.
Real Salt Lake season ticket members will receive an e-mail from the Club on Thursday morning with detailed instructions on creating and accessing their new accounts within SeatGeek. For more information, visit https://www.rsl.com/news/rsl-ticketing-faq or check out RSL’s Mobile and Desktop FAQ videos.
ABOUT REAL SALT LAKE
During the first week of January 2022, the RSL compendium of properties was acquired by global sports entrepreneur David Blitzer – who boasts interests in the Philadelphia 76ers (NBA), the New Jersey Devils (NHL), the Cleveland Guardians (baseball) and six European soccer entities, including Crystal Palace (England), FC Augsburg (Germany), Estoril (Portugal), ADO Den Haag (Netherlands), Alcorcón (Spain) and SK Beveren (Belgium). The Blitzer group partners with Utah-based Smith Entertainment Group (SEG), which owns the Utah Jazz (NBA), led by Ryan Smith and including Dwayne Wade, among others.
Real Salt Lake completed its 18th Major League Soccer regular season, its first full season under Head Coach Pablo Mastroeni, who led the Utah side for the final 100 days last year, advancing RSL to the 2022 Audi MLS Cup Playoffs for the 11th time in the last 14 years.
The Club's MLS Cup 2009 victory marked the state of Utah's only major professional championship in nearly 40 years, the title preceding an historic run to the 2010/11 CONCACAF Champions League Final. Buoyed by a passionate base boasting several thousand season ticket holders, RSL has enjoyed a prominent home field advantage – posting a dominant 154-48-50 (Win-Loss-Draw) record across all competitions on Utah soil (1.97 points per game for a 0.702 win pct.) – since building its permanent home in Sandy nearly 14 years ago.
In 2015, the club expanded its development pyramid with the addition of Real Monarchs SLC, one of several MLS-operated clubs playing in the USL Championship, the United States' Division II setup. The Monarchs boast a pair of titles in its brief history, as the 2017 USL regular-season champions, later winning the USL Final in 2019. For the 2022 season and beyond, Real Monarchs will compete in the newly launched “MLS NEXT Pro” as part of a joint United States and Canada endeavor to complete the professional player pathway by connecting youth academies in MLS NEXT to first teams in Major League Soccer.
The entire RSL pyramid, which includes the RSL Academy’s U-15 and U-17 teams, calls the expansive Zions Bank Training Center in Herriman, Utah their daily training home. With five world-class grass fields, two indoor turf fields, a residential dormitory, the STEM-based RSL Academy High School and the 5,000-seat Zions Bank Stadium located on a 42-acre campus, Utah’s sporting future is bright.
The RSL Community Foundation was established in 2016, created with the goals of being active in the community year-round, utilizing the popularity and reach of RSL and the Monarchs in promoting health and wellness in children throughout the region, engaging supporters of soccer to raise funds and volunteer time for various local initiatives.
ABOUT SEATGEEK
SeatGeek is on a mission to transform the live event experience for fans, teams and venues. By combining a consumer marketplace with innovative primary ticketing box office technology, SeatGeek has become a high-growth global ticketing leader. SeatGeek delights fans through industry-first features including: Deal Score, its proprietary ticket rating technology; Rally, its event-day operating system; and SeatGeek Swaps, the first return policy offered by a major ticketer. In parallel, the platform's open-ecosystem enterprise ticketing software empowers teams, venues and promoters to efficiently grow their businesses while delivering the superior experience that all fans deserve.
SeatGeek is proud to partner with some of the most recognized names in sports and live entertainment across the globe including the Dallas Cowboys, Brooklyn Nets and Liverpool F.C., as well as Major League Soccer (MLS), National Football League (NFL), half of the English Premier League (EPL) and multiple theaters across NYC's Broadway and London's West End. Curious? Visit www.seatgeek.com.
Contacts
MEDIA CONTACTS
SeatGeek
Lisa Chan, Head of Communications
press@seatgeek.com
Real Salt Lake
John A. Genna, Vice President, Communications & Public Relations
jgenna@rsl.com
Trey Fitz-Gerald, Senior Director, Communications & Public Relations
trey.fitzgerald@rsl.com