VALDOSTA — Charging for live-streamed football games could become a reality for Wildcats fans. 

It’s an idea Valdosta City Schools has been chewing on for some time, but it was brought to public attention recently during the Valdosta Board of Education retreat.

Jeffries Eldridge, who volunteers on Friday night home games to live stream football, said Valdosta is one of the only school systems that live streams but doesn’t charge.

Colquitt County does it, he said, and it charges $60 for a season pass.

“As big as it has gotten, we’re losing money revenue-wise,” Eldridge said. “It would be important to generate money for the athletic fund.”

There is a concern that people are choosing to watch the free live stream from home instead of actually buying a ticket and going to the game.

Since the live-stream service became an option in 2002, Reginald Mitchell, athletic director, said home game ticket sales have dropped.

“I’ve seen our ticket sales drop,” Mitchell said. “I’m not saying the live stream is the main reason, but I think it’s a big reason.”

Both Eldridge and Mitchell like the idea of a season pass worth $50 to $60, while also offering the option of a single-game pass worth the price of a game ticket at $10.

Eldridge said there would probably be no charge for away games because it would likely not be approved by the home team to make a profit off of their game.

The item is still in the discussion phase, but Mitchell said he would like to see live-stream fees put in place by the upcoming football season if the board approves it. 

Katelyn Umholtz is a reporter with the Valdosta Daily Times. She can be contacted at (229)244-3400 ext. 1256.