Chase Field will be set up for 43,000 fans at Sunday’s WWE Royal Rumble in Phoenix, Arizona and it looks like there may be a significant amount of papering or tarping off sections as plenty of tickets are still available, according to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.
As of mid-week, the expectation was that 25,000 to 30,000 people have bought tickets for the Rumble pay-per-view. These numbers include the 2,000 tickets that are still left on the secondary market. WWE will be using the full stadium, except for the part that will be blocked off due to the stage.
The Rumble is the only event being held at Chase Field this weekend but the Talking Stick Arena will host tonight’s WWE NXT “Takeover: Phoenix” event, plus Monday’s RAW and Tuesday’s SmackDown.
The expectation, as of mid-week, was 8,500 to 9,000 paid tickets for Takeover, just 7,000 to 7,500 paid tickets for RAW, and 6,500 to 7,000 paid tickets for SmackDown. The Observer notes that the RAW numbers would be considered to be a big disappointment.
Several lower sections and around two-thirds of the upper deck on the same side as the hard-camera aren’t being used for Takeover. Just three sections facing the hard-camera are being opened for RAW while the rest are being tarped off, in addition to one section of the lower deck on the same side as the hard-camera. None of the upper deck sections with one lower deck section are not being sold for SmackDown.
The Rumble tickets are going for $22.80 on the secondary market. The price for entry to Takeover from the secondary market is $39.87, $33.10 for RAW and $26.60 for SmackDown.