49er faithful head to Las Vegas - even with no tickets - to Super Bowl
CUPERTINO, Calif. - The Super Bowl kicks off in Las Vegas in less than two weeks.
Several 49ers fans are gearing up for the showdown following a historic comeback.
Many fans hope to witness the big game in person, but they'll have to pay big bucks for that opportunity.
One couple in Cupertino bought airline tickets to Las Vegas well before the 49ers won the NFC Championship Game against the Detroit Lions on Sunday.
But they don't have tickets to the big game.
Francisco Vasquez and his fiancée, Veronica Lopez, are searching for Super Bowl tickets online in the secondary market.
They said they had so much faith in the 49ers making it to the Super Bowl that they booked their airfare to Las Vegas three weeks ago.
They plan to meet up with fans from different parts of the country.
"The love and the energy. Everybody cheering. It's like you're in Lala Land," said Vasquez.
Lopez laughingly added, "We love the Niners, and we're rooting for our team. And nobody has a ticket to get in."
The couple plans to attend a private tailgate party hosted by a fellow fan who rented a private parking lot within close walking distance of Allegiant Stadium.
They said they're unlikely to buy Super Bowl tickets, which now range from $8,000 to more than $20,000 each.
Jesse Mendez of San Jose also doesn't have a Super Bowl ticket.
"I headed out to the team store today to pick up championship gear," Mendez said, adding that he went right after work to buy championship gear at the team store at Levi's Stadium.
He attended the NFC Championship game Sunday but said the lines to buy gear were too long after the game.
Mendez said he sat in the section below the suite where rapper Eminem, a Detroit Lions fan, watched the game.
He said Eminem left in the third quarter when the tide turned.
Mendez said he razzed the celebrity with a line from one of his songs.
"'Will the real Slim Shady please stand up?' He stood up, and he was gone, so that was what I was waiting for the whole time, leave there unhappy," said Mendez.
Mendez attended the Super Bowl in 2020 when the 49ers played the Kansas City Chiefs and lost in Miami.
He said he paid $6000 for that ticket.
"Maybe that's the karma that needs to change for me, not to be in the stadium for this one.
Who knows? Mendez said he still wants to go if he can get a ticket.
As for the couple, they're Vegas-bound even without tickets.
"I'm anxious. I already want to leave now. I wish they were playing this Sunday," said Vasquez.
The couple plans to fly out early on Super Bowl Sunday, stay overnight at a hotel, and return first thing Monday morning so they can go straight to work.
Amber Lee is a reporter with KTVU. Email Amber at Amber.Lee@Fox.com or text/leave message at 510-599-3922. Follow her on Facebook @AmberKTVU, Instagram @AmberKTVU or Twitter @AmberKTVU.