Chloe Edwards, Photography Editor

Abhinav Karthikeyan ’25 eagerly anticipated this year’s Yale-Harvard game, his last one as an undergraduate. However, Karthikeyan ended up among many unlucky seniors who did not receive a ticket under the new lottery system.

Traditionally, tickets to the annual Yale-Harvard football game, known as “The Game,” were sold on a first-come, first-served basis, allowing students to secure their spots with proper planning. This year, however, Yale opted for a lottery system, citing fairness and logistical challenges in accommodating the overwhelming interest for the annual event. The change left many students, like Karthikeyan, feeling disappointed and frustrated.

“This is my last opportunity to experience the game as an undergraduate student,” said Karthikeyan. “[Having] us participate in a lottery, this seems an ineffective use of something that could help guarantee the experience to seniors, and I’m a little bit upset about that.”

Karthikeyan said that he can only attend The Game “thanks to the generosity of Harvard Athletics” as he purchased a ticket from their website for “five times the price marketed for a lottery ticket.”

According to Burgwell Howard, dean of student engagement at Yale College, in previous years, students had to line up for hours outside Ray Tompkins House to obtain a ticket for when The Game was held up north. Because of complaints by students who were unable or unwilling to skip class to wait in a physical line, Yale shifted to an online ticketing process which also experienced issues as students had conflicts when the tickets were released.

“This year’s lottery process was designed to give everyone a shot at getting a ticket,” Howard wrote.

Howard cited input from students who felt that seniors should have some advantage in the process as to why the lottery process offered a greater opportunity to seniors without boxing out first years, sophomores and juniors who also wished to attend the game.

Seniors who entered the lottery were automatically given four entries, juniors three, sophomores two and first-years only one. Students were also granted additional entries for attending select fall varsity athletics games. 

“Students who had demonstrated their interest in supporting their student-athlete classmates and Yale Athletics, in general, had the opportunity to improve their odds,” said Howard. “We will continue to review the process and make adjustments for 2026 when Harvard once again hosts the Game.”

Despite the explanation of weighting in the ticket distribution process, many students remain unhappy with the decision. Based entirely on luck, the new process has received an overwhelmingly negative response from Yalies who spoke with the News.

“The only positive thing I can say [about the lottery] is that I won it,” said Owen Zerbib ’28. “I don’t think it’s fair that for the one big football game that we have, students are paying more than $100 out of pocket in addition to travel fares. I think it’s all a little out of hand and doesn’t feel that considerate.”

While student tickets were priced at $25 through the lottery, general admission tickets were sold for $125. Harvard Athletics provided all Harvard undergraduates with a free ticket.

Howard told the News that the number of tickets handed out through the lottery was “significantly smaller than the population of Yale College.” After the initial release of winners on Oct. 21, a small number of students were moved off the waitlist and were granted tickets. However, the limited quantity of tickets available to Yalies has fueled a burgeoning black market.

Stellan Rogers ’28 found the buying and selling of tickets to be disheartening as “they only really paid $25 and they’re just trying to make the bank.”

Joanne Zhao ’28, desperate for a ticket, was originally going to buy a ticket from someone for $150. However, her upperclassman friend graciously sold theirs to her for $50.

Rogers told the News that he won a ticket despite never attending any extra athletic events for additional entries in the lottery. He added that he could see how the process could be frustrating for students — especially seniors. 

“Don’t hate the player, hate The Game,” said Rogers.

Some Yalies, hoping to buy a ticket from a Harvard friend, also faced difficulties.

With desperation growing, Harvard house resident deans and academic coordinators have recently circulated messages to Harvard students that tickets are non-transferable and that students who buy or sell tickets will be referred to the Administrative Board, Harvard College’s disciplinary committee.

Ryan Fernandes ’28 told the News that because he lost the lottery, the experience of his first Yale-Harvard feels “far more empty as a whole” which in turn has made him “a lot less excited to go.” In a last-ditch effort, he even plans to go to the tailgate with friends to scope out anyone selling last-minute tickets and to see how plausible it would be to sneak into The Game.

Noah Silverberg ’26 believes that more drastic measures must be made with Yale hosting The Game every year. He said that this would be the only way to give everyone tickets and ensure that “we can actually fit people and actually have fun.”

Braiya Nolan ’25, who went to volleyball games to receive additional entries, believes that seniors should have received more lottery points than they were allotted.

“As a first-year student, this might sound counterintuitive, but I think that there should not be a scenario where first-year students are getting lottery tickets and seniors are not,” said Alex Geldzahler ’28. “I don’t know how to do it in a better way, but, it felt wrong to see a FroCo without a ticket and their frosh with one.”

Some Yalies, however, like Alex Shadman ’27, see the lottery system as a cruel but ultimately fair way to distribute tickets amongst the student body. Shadman received a free ticket from a friend after initially losing the lottery.

Trevor Oakley ’28 said that he feels rather ambivalent about not getting a ticket and that he does not really care that much as The Game is only a small event in the grand scheme of his years at Yale.

“[Having a] ticket really only changes about 3 hours on Saturday,” said Geldzahler, who is going to The Game without a ticket to visit friends before returning home. “I think that the weekend will be fun irrespective of whether you actually attend the Game or not.”

Yale will host the 141st edition of The Game in 2025.

Howard told the News that because the Yale Bowl is almost twice the size of Harvard’s stadium, Yale should be able to accommodate every student, undergraduate or graduate/professional, who wishes to attend the game. 

Kick-off for the 140th playing of The Game will be on Saturday at noon EST.