Three sort-of 'classes' or 'categories' here:
- There are season tickets to UW sports/teams that do not require a "donation", but might be more easily gotten if a "donation" is made. Tim's experience with women's hockey falls into this category (as does mine). For someone who began buying season tickets to women's hockey years ago - like Tim and I - continuing the purchase of those tickets does not require any "donation", either one-time or annual.
- There are season tickets to UW sports/teams that if you do not currently have, you might need to make a one-time "donation" to begin getting - like my friend Doug, or Tim wanting to add a ticket. I'm pretty sure that if Tim or Doug had made such a "donation", then renewing their order for those tickets would not require a further "donation".
- And there are season tickets to UW sports/teams that require an annual "donation" to continue buying. Most if not all football tickets are in this category. I assume most men's basketball tickets are in this category. Beginning in 2022, some women's volleyball tickets moved into this category, and then this year many more - but not all - VB tickets (including mine) were moved here.
(The annual "donation" I now have to make to keep my VB tickets is $100, above the cost of the tickets themselves. I've read guesses or estimates that it would take a $5000 "donation" to begin getting VB tickets, when the time for 'new applications' comes around. When I started getting VB tickets in 2014, all I had to do was call the athletic department and ask for a ticket.)
Yes, the university refers to these payments as "donations", but that usage is rather Orwellian.
(I guess there's a fourth category, too. I'm pretty sure if you called the athletic department and said you wanted season tickets to women's basketball, for example, no "donation" would be needed; they'd be happy to sell you tickets.)