Home opener weekend brought renewed momentum and wins for both the Dynamo and the Quakes, marking a seamless transition to modern ticketing with Tixr.
MLS home opener weekend is one of the most visible moments of the year. For the Houston Dynamo and San Jose Earthquakes, that visibility extended beyond the match as both clubs opened the season on new ticketing technology after years on legacy systems.
In the world of major league sports, a change at this level runs through the entire organization. It shapes revenue, fan engagement, and matchday operations, influencing how the club shows up at every touchpoint. Both teams made the shift to gain flexibility and control, with new team-branded apps bringing that evolution directly into the hands of supporters.
Across Houston and San Jose, more than 36,000 fans came through the gates, including the Dynamo’s largest home-opening attendance in the last five years. Both clubs walked away with victories, and operations ran seamlessly, laying the groundwork for a strong season ahead.
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Launching a Unified System at MLS Pace
Both Houston and San Jose entered 2026 from different legacy ticketing environments, each partnering with us for a more cohesive foundation for sales, operations, and fan engagement. That foundation moved quickly from strategy to execution, with both teams selling on Tixr within weeks.
At the same time, both clubs launched team apps powered by Tixr, bringing ticket management directly into the digital fan experience. By opening weekend, everything from parking to premium packages was already operating inside a unified system.
One early example of that shift was group sales. Instead of relying on external portals, both clubs activated native group pages in Tixr, with over 15% of single-game revenue attributed to these offers.
“Native group sales pages are a revenue accelerator. They allow us to deploy customized offers quickly, empower community leaders to promote directly to their networks, and track performance independently. That combination of speed and control is a success multiplier.” – Jared Graff, VP of Ticketing, Houston Dynamo and Dash
Reimagining Team Apps & Digital Fan Experience
As the Dynamo and Quakes reshaped their ticketing foundation, they also redefined how supporters engage with the club throughout the season. Their new team apps serve as a central hub for ticket access, team news, roster updates, special offers, and real-time match information, creating a sleek, streamlined path for engagement beyond the ninety minutes on the field.
Adoption followed quickly. Over 60% of consumer transactions for each club were completed on mobile during opening week, with thousands of fans downloading the apps to buy, sell, transfer, and manage their tickets.
“Fans liked how good the app looks and how it’s centered around accessing your tickets, parking, and more, instead of being a secondary feature that integrates into a team app. People used to get signed out of their ticketing account almost every time they closed the app, so they’re happy that’s not a problem anymore.” – Kody LaGuire, Sr. Manager of Ticket Operations, San Jose Earthquakes
For a transition of this scale, the absence of friction often says more than loud praise. Season ticket holders were able to pull up their loyalty card natively in the app without any additional logins or verification, and fans were able to manage tickets in their accounts without disruption during one of the busiest weekends of the year.
That steady adoption carried directly into matchday, where a strong digital foundation translated into smooth entry and operations.
Operational Confidence on Opening Night
Home opener weekend brings compressed timelines, high traffic, and little margin for error. Houston and San Jose moved through it with control, working closely with our teams to ensure every touchpoint held steady.
Staff onboarding was completed in just an hour at both clubs. Box office sellers and gate staff, across a range of experience levels, became comfortable with the interface in short order and were able to navigate sales and entry processes confidently from the start.
“Training was simple and seamless. Tools and features for staff are intuitive and don’t require prior ticketing experience or hours of practice.” – Kody LaGuire, Sr. Manager of Ticket Operations, San Jose Earthquakes
Entry operations reflected that readiness. Multi-Ticket Check-In supported high-volume arrivals, while contactless and rotating ticket delivery enabled secure, reliable access at the gates.
“Having a wealth of tools at my fingertips with Tixr Studio on my phone—being able to view live scan counts, process orders, and troubleshoot ticketing issues at the gates all from my personal iPhone was a gamechanger.” – Kody LaGuire, Sr. Manager of Ticket Operations, San Jose Earthquakes
Both clubs secured wins on the field, and operations remained steady throughout the night. The tech shift blended into the background, where ticketing should be. It was a weekend of real momentum, and we’re proud to stand alongside them as that momentum continues.
“After one game, the partnership has been collaborative. Both sides are aligned behind driving fan experience, innovative process, and revenue performance.” – Jared Graff, VP of Ticketing, Houston Dynamo and Dash
With even more in the works, our partnership is built to scale, innovate, and redefine what modern ticketing can look like in major league sports.
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