49ers fans are finding their faith tested by the conditions at Levi's Stadium and an already trying season. ABC 7 reports that as many as three thousand Season Builders Licenses, or SBLs are available for sale and resale.
"I'm here to support the home team, but it seems like they're not helping us, and they're making it worse for us," said San Jose resident Tuan Le. Although Le bought a $12,000 seat license, which requires an extra $2,000 for the tickets themselves, he's found the tailgating and stadium experience lackluster.
Another license holder, Preston Burnes of San Francisco, is equally unhappy as a stadium goer. "Even if they're losing, what we still would be looking for is a fun game day experience, an opportunity to get together, to share a tailgate, to enjoy some football, and that hasn't really been what we found this season, or even last season," Burnes said.
Due to a new policy of digitally releasing tickets just days before each game, game-by-game tickets are difficult to re-sell, adding insult to injury in another change Burnes doesn't relish. "We just hope that the 49ers would look at us as having already purchased these tickets and let us do what we want with them, rather than placing all these restrictions on them, to make it suit their needs, and allow them to make the most money possible," Burnes said.
Says Le: "If they give us the hard tickets, I might think about keeping the seats, cause I could sell it, and make my money back to break even or make a little money."
Further, the sunny stadium has made spectating a chore. "Half the stadium, we get beat up by the sun," Le said. "So if you're going to watch a game, you want to enjoy, drink a few beers. Here, you drink a few beers, and you get beat up, come home with sunburn, it's just a bad experience."
Speaking of getting beaten up, he may be referring to that literal possibility. As the Mercury News reports, two San Francisco 49ers season ticket holders who were beaten in a stadium bathroom by a pair of drunk brothers have sued the team for creating an unsafe environment. From the Merc:
In a lawsuit filed Friday in Santa Clara County Superior Court, Kiran and Amish Patel, cousins who attended the game against the Kansas City Chiefs last year, contend the 49ers security efforts did not address the potential for violence from drunken fans, "creating an unreasonable risk of injury." The two Central Valley brothers who committed the attack, both of whom were charged with assault, beat the two men so badly that one wound up in critical condition and underwent skull surgery in an incident captured on videotape by a bystander.
The suit also cites 49ers players' off-field violence as a possible contributing factor. And, just earlier this month, you may recall an unfortunate fight between 49ers supporters and a Viking fan who really wanted to fight.
“What’s up, any of you fuckers want some?!” said a Viking fan who had just been "talking smack" with a 49er fan. After a brief moment of silence, a few 49ers fans decided that in fact they did "want some," tackling the Vikings fan to the ground, kicking him in the head, and other such brutish behavior.
Maybe not a scene for everyone.
Previously: Video: 49ers Fans Brutally Beat Smack-Talking Vikings Fan Outside Levi's Stadium