Cardinals Sell Out NFC Championship Game Tickets in Six Minutes

By Erik Matuszewski

Jan. 11 (Bloomberg) -- The Arizona Cardinals sold out tickets to the National Football Conference championship game against the Philadelphia Eagles in six minutes.

When the Cardinals hosted the Atlanta Falcons in the first round of the postseason, they needed an extension from the National Football League to sell their remaining tickets at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, and ensure the game would be televised locally.

Arizona beat the Carolina Panthers 33-13 yesterday on the road to advance to the NFC championship game. The Cardinals will get to host the Eagles, who beat the defending Super Bowl champion New York Giants today, because they have a better seed.

“Ticket demand was high even before the Eagles-Giants game started,” Cardinals Executive Vice President Ron Minegar said in a statement. “Once that outcome was decided and it was certain that we were hosting the NFC championship game the demand grew to enormous proportions.”

The tickets, which were available to Arizona residents only, went on sale at 3 p.m. local time by phone, Internet and at the stadium box office, the team said. The stadium will have a capacity of just over 70,000 for the Jan. 18 game.

To contact the reporter on this story: Erik Matuszewski in New York at matuszewski@bloomberg.net
Last Updated: January 11, 2009 19:55 EST

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601079&sid=a.VGA67FadKE&refer=home