StubHub is the world's leading marketplace to buy and sell tickets to any live event. The company sells more than 300 million tickets to sporting events, concerts, festivals, and other events in 195 countries each year. Making potential Stubhub stock a real crowd pleaser.
The global ticketing platform had plans to go public in 2022. However, it put their plans on hold due to challenging conditions in the initial public offering (IPO) market. With market conditions starting to look up, StubHub again appears to be gearing up for a public market listing that could come within the next 6 - 12 months.
StubHub's growing presence in the market has many fans wondering how they can invest in the company. Here's everything you need to know about how to invest in stocks like StubHub as the company prepares to go public.
IPO
Publicly traded?
Is StubHub publicly traded?
StubHub Holdings isn't publicly traded. It's a private company controlled by its founder and CEO, Eric Baker, who co-founded it in 2000. He subsequently sold it to eBay (EBAY -1.59%) in 2007 for $310 million.
Baker also founded Viagogo in 2006. The venture-backed company acquired StubHub from eBay in 2020 for about $4.1 billion. The combined company is now StubHub Holdings.
When will it IPO?
When will StubHub IPO?
StubHub has its IPO process restarting in September 2025. In 2022, StubHub Holdings explored a direct market listing that would have valued the ticket reseller at more than $13 billion. However, it never went through with the listing due to changing market conditions.
According to CNBC, the company initially paused its 2025 IPO rollout due to President Trump's various tariffs affecting the markets in both consumer spending and a general downturn across the stock market.
How to buy
How to buy StubHub stock
Since StubHub hasn't gone public yet, you can't buy shares of the ticket reseller. However, you could consider investing in an alternative. Here are alternative entertainment stocks to consider while you wait for StubHub to complete its IPO:
Live Nation Entertainment
Live Nation Entertainment (LYV -0.01%) is the world's leading live entertainment company. It owns Ticketmaster (which competes against StubHub in the ticket resale market), Live Nation Concerts, and Live Nation Media & Sponsorship.
Walt Disney
Walt Disney (DIS 0.79%) is a leading media and entertainment company. Disney owns several media and entertainment brands. It operates three business segments: Disney Entertainment (e.g., Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm, and Hulu), ESPN, and Disney Experiences (e.g., theme parks, cruise ships, and consumer products). The company's ESPN business brings live sports to viewers worldwide.
Madison Square Garden Sports
Madison Square Garden Sports (MSGS 0.86%) is a leading professional sports company. It owns the New York Knicks (NBA), New York Rangers (NHL), and two development league teams (Westchester Knicks of the NBAGL and Hartford Wolf Pack of the AHL). The company also operates a professional sports performance center (MSG Training Center).
Invesco Leisure and Entertainment ETF
Invesco Leisure and Entertainment ETF (PEJ -0.39%): This fund invests in companies focused on the leisure and entertainment industries. It held 31 stocks in 2025. The fund had a 0.57% total ETF expense ratio.
Investors who want to buy one of these StubHub alternatives can purchase shares in any brokerage account.
Here's a step-by-step guide on how to invest in these entertainment stocks:
- Open your brokerage account: Log in to your brokerage account where you handle your investments.
- Search for the stock: Enter the ticker or company name into the search bar to bring up the stock's trading page.
- Decide how many shares to buy: Consider your investment goals and how much of your portfolio you want to allocate to this stock.
- Select order type: Choose between a market order to buy at the current price or a limit order to specify the maximum price you're willing to pay.
- Submit your order: Confirm the details and submit your buy order.
- Review your purchase: Check your portfolio to ensure your order was filled as expected and adjust your investment strategy accordingly.
Shareholder
Profitability
Is StubHub profitable?
Digging into a company's profitability is a vital aspect of investment research. However, because StubHub isn't publicly traded, there isn't much publicly available information regarding its profitability. According to Reuters, StubHub lost roughly $2.8 million in 2024 but did see a 29.5% increase in revenue following its IPO announcement.
Interestingly, the company appears to be generating positive cash flow. According to a ratings report by credit rating agency S&P Global (NYSE: SPGI) in early 2024, more news is expected in late 2025.
Should I invest?
Should I invest in StubHub?
Since the company hasn't completed an IPO, you have plenty of time to decide whether to invest in StubHub.
Here's a look at some of the reasons you might want to invest:
- You're a heavy user of StubHub and want to invest in the company.
- You believe that demand for live entertainment will continue growing as people spend more of their disposable income on experiences.
- You think StubHub can grow its revenue and profits rapidly in the future.
- You're not concerned about StubHub's high leverage ratio.
- You like investing in founder-led companies.
- You understand the risks of investing in IPO stocks, including that they can be very volatile.
Here are some reasons you want to steer clear of StubHub after IPO:
- You don't use the company's services or prefer a rival ticket reseller.
- You're concerned about StubHub's high leverage ratio.
- You think the company's valuation is too high.
- You're concerned about growing competition from other ticket reselling platforms.
- You're concerned that a recession could significantly affect demand for live entertainment.
Related investing topics
The bottom line on StubHub
StubHub is the world's leading marketplace for buying and selling tickets to live entertainment events and experiences. It's capitalizing on growing demand for in-person entertainment. That catalyst could make it a hot IPO when it finally goes public, which could come very soon.
However, investing in StubHub won't be for everyone. The company took on a lot of debt to buy its namesake and get through the pandemic. That's one of the many risks investors interested in the company must consider before buying shares.
FAQ
Investing in StubHub FAQ
Can you buy stock in StubHub?
You currently can't buy stock in StubHub. It's a privately held company controlled by its founder and CEO, Eric Baker, and other investors.
Who owns StubHub Holdings?
StubHub Holdings is a private company. In 2020, eBay sold StubHub to Viagogo for almost $4.1 billion. The company has since rebranded as StubHub Holdings, a privately held entity controlled by the founder of both companies, Eric Baker.
How much is StubHub worth?
In 2022, StubHub Holdings explored going public via a direct listing that would have valued the company at more than $13 billion. However, a lot has changed since then, including a significant rise in interest rates that has weighed on the private market valuations of many tech-related companies. StubHub Holdings likely has a much lower market value today than the last time it attempted to go public.
