The idea for the Milwaukee Brewers’ Timeless Ticket promotion began with a trip to the post office, team chief operating officer Rick Schlesinger said, in 2015, when 1,000 special tickets went on sale. Inspired by the Everlasting Stamps, he said at the time: “I wondered what we could do to give our fans something that would give them the promise of being able to attend any game. »
The Brewers scored a personalized $1,000 bronze ticket, redeemable for a seat at any home game, even a World Series game. The club hadn’t competed in the Fall Classic since 1982, but hundreds of buyers held out hope for a return. Eleven years later, the title holders are looking to make their investment a reality and realize their dream of seeing their team play for a championship.
“If they can redeem this ticket for me and get me to the game like I’ve been imagining for 12 years, that would be the best thing ever,” one ticket holder recently told Milwaukee’s ABC station.
But not everyone is entirely happy with how the buyout process unfolded after Milwaukee swept the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLCS, according to conversations with four Timeless Ticket holders, including one who requested anonymity to discuss ongoing discussions with the team.
Danny Fochesato, a Milwaukee resident, said Sportico that last Wednesday, when the Brewers were leading 2-0 in the NLCS, he “was at the ticket booth as soon as it opened.” But while he expected to choose between premium seats, the best options available were on the upper level terrace of American Family Field, where he was offered free entry as well as the opportunity to purchase three more at a nominal value of $1,000 each. The form indicated that tickets would be distributed for either of two different games.
“Overall, I’m not satisfied,” he said.
Another apparent Brewers fan posted on “I refuse to engrave this on a note that I could have purchased for face value,” he wrote. “Buying it back allows them to get out of it.” A third self-described Timeless ticket holder called the process of exchanging World Series tickets “beyond frustrating” in an article on X.
The disagreement appears to stem from the terms of the initial offer. “The Timeless ticket and any additional tickets purchased may be exchanged for the best available seat(s), subject to ticket availability at the time of exchange,” the team told fans in 2015, according to documentation maintained by Fochesato. The Brewers also encouraged fans who were trading playoff seats to do so before the public sales periods began. For early purchasers, the vouchers also provided access to nine regular-season Brewers games of their choice.
The web page promoting the deal specifically referenced the ability for ticket holders to attend a theoretical World Series 7 Game, although it did not specify where they would watch from. Fans remember that they were offered better spots for the 2018 World Series, before the Brewers were eliminated in Game 7 of the NLCS. But the process changed before last year’s playoffs, they said, when holders were shown a form with certain areas available, rather than being able to choose seats from a broader set of available options.
After further discussions with team officials, Fochesato was offered a lower solo seat for the first game, with the option to purchase three face value stubs on the upper level for the second game, when he plans to attend with his father and sister. A staff member told him that season ticket holders had the option to purchase additional tickets and that some seats were reserved for potential season ticket holders.
“With unprecedented interest in postseason baseball, fans should strongly consider securing a seating plan for the 2027 season, which provides the best opportunity to access tickets to future postseason and World Series games,” Schlesinger said in a statement last week.
Fochesato said he originally purchased the promotion on his birthday in 2015, with the vision of a World Series in mind, even as the team was enduring a six-year playoff drought.
“It’s just unfortunate to be treated like this after, you know, being so loyal to them for all these years,” he said. “I gave them $1,000 11 years ago. That should allow me to bet on people who don’t even exist yet.”
Fochesato pointed out that if he had instead invested that money in the S&P 500 at the time, it would be worth more than $4,000 today.
Certainly, some fans seem satisfied with the reward for their investment and the long-held belief that the Brewers would return to the World Series, even if they might not end up with the exact seats of their dreams. The cheapest tickets for Friday’s first game of the Fall Classic cost more than $2,300 on secondary market ticketing platforms. Quickly snapped up seats sold through the team were initially priced from more than $900, with season ticket holders previously offering cheaper options. Both MLB and the host franchises play a role in setting prices.
A team spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.
Dustin Buck purchased two Timeless tickets, reasoning that as an Iowa resident he likely would not have the opportunity to purchase Brewers World Series seats directly from the team without them. Sure enough, a presale last week was limited to Wisconsin residents.
Buck exchanged one of his two timeless tickets, purchasing two additional stubs as complementary entries. He will take his 17 and 13 year old players to the first match on Friday.
“I’m absolutely delighted,” he said. “Not many fathers get to take their kids to the World Series, and my kids will always have that story.”
Competing teams keep 15% of the ticket revenue generated for the first four World Series games they host, with 60% going to the players’ prize pool and the league also collecting a portion of the tickets. It’s unclear how Timeless Ticket revenue will be distributed, or how many long-time ticket holders will be in attendance over the weekend.
Buck had the opportunity to convert both of his timeless tickets, including placing one for a hypothetical Game 7. Instead, he’s holding on to the second move to take advantage of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
“When I bought those tickets, I had faith in Milwaukee that one day they would make the World Series,” he said. “I’m confident in this second ticket that I’m going to get to exchange it for a World Series in the future.”
(This story has been updated in the third to last paragraph to clarify that teams keep 15% of World Series gate revenue. It has been corrected with the spelling of Fochesato..)
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