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'$1500 for this': Hollywood star rages over Aussie basketball 'disgrace'

Russell Crowe has added his voice to the condemnation of the seating arrangements at the Boomers’ clash with Team USA at Marvel Stadium.

Many fans already unhappy with the lack of star power at the much-hyped series in Melbourne were also angered by the seating fiasco on Thursday night.

RECAP: Key takeaways from Team USA's win in opener

The World Cup warm-up match, which is followed by game two on Saturday afternoon, was played on a drop-in raised floor to accommodate a crowd of around 50,000.

Russell Crowe's view at Marvel Stadium, pictured here.
Russell Crowe's view (left), only marginally better than those who paid $300 (right). Image: Russell Crowe/Leanne Willis

While it was a spectacular sight from the raised seats, those who were on "the floor" who paid hundreds of dollars for their seats had limited viewing.

The seats were all on the same level, meaning those at the back were staring at other fans’ heads.

One of those fans was Russell Crowe, who took to Twitter to show off his limited view despite paying $1500 for a courtside seat.

Marvel Stadium, pictured here during the Australia v Team USA basketball game.
A general view of Marvel Stadium for the Boomers v Team USA game. (Photo by Kelly Defina/Getty Images)

“$1500 a ticket for this view. Jokes on me,” the Hollywood star tweeted.

“If you weren’t among 50,000 there and you chose to watch it on tv at home, good decision.

“The only thing achieved tonight by @BasketballAus was enjoining with the promoters in ripping off well meaning lovers of the sport. It was a farce.”

The floor-level seats were your garden variety white plastic, believed to be tied together with cable ties.

Those in the back rows at the football/soccer stadium were also so far from the action they had to rely on big screens hanging over the court to make out the player numbers.

Many took to social media to vent their anger, with some comparing the match to the ill-fated Fyre Festival, a fraudulent luxury music festival in the Bahamas made into a popular Netflix documentary.

Latest in string of controversies

Leading into the match there was disappointment and anger from ticketholders with the US team missing much of its star power.

Fans felt the advertising and marketing material featuring global NBA names such as Anthony Davis and James Harden to promote the game was misleading, given they weren't taking part.

Australia's own NBA superstar Ben Simmons also withdrew from the Boomers squad.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) announced last week that it was in talks with the promoter TEG Live.

According to the ABC, the ACCC announced on Thursday night that was "aware of refunds being made to consumers for the USA Basketball games ... in Melbourne and Sydney on 22, 24 and 26 August".

Despite this many ticketholders on social media remained frustrated.

with AAP