As Soccer World Cup hype captures the globe, local police are clamping down on people illegally selling tickets online. However, soccer governing body Fifa's official channel - the only legal means by which to resell tickets - is so cumbersome it all but makes this impossible, says an analyst.
Selling tickets through any medium other than Fifa is a criminal offence, and people found guilty of doing so could be fined R15 000 - or spend five years behind bars.
Reselling tickets without written permission from the global body was made illegal through a general notice signed into law last year by then trade and industry minister Mandisi Mpahlwa.
The only legal way to sell unwanted tickets is through the Fifa Web site, which has recently seen repeated systems failures that have left would-be ticket buyers fuming recently.
A police spokesman says the force is cracking down on people who sell tickets online, and is actively running an investigation into illegal ticket sales.
While he would not say how the investigation is being run, due to intelligence concerns, people have been arrested for selling tickets outside of stadiums. “Some people are so bold as to do it in front of the police.”
Police are also cracking down on people who run scam accommodation and flight deals.
Not on our site
Despite the law, tickets can still be found for sale online. However, bidorbuy has removed listings that were up on the site - and people contravening its policy face being handed over to the police.
Most of the tickets offered on bidorbuy were in the auction format, with starting bids ranging from R150 to R20 000 before the site removed the listings.
However, the site has since closed all listings selling tickets to the soccer spectacular, and amended its terms and conditions to state that it is against bidorbuy's listing policy “for any unauthorised seller to list any tickets for the Fifa World Cup on the bidorbuy Web site”.
Higgins says people who contravene this rule have their listing removed, and face the risk of having their details handed over to the police for prosecution. Despite the change in policy - and the fact that selling Fifa tickets is a crime - “Fifa tickets” is still the top searched-for term on bidorbuy, he adds.
“We know that some of our sellers are not happy about the ban, but a law is a law,” says Higgins.
No option
Steven Ambrose, MD of WWW Strategy, says the fact that it is a crime to resell tickets through anywhere else but Fifa means that people could be left holding worthless tickets that they do not want as the site does not function properly.
“The whole ticketing system was an exercise in sheer incompetence,” he says. Ambrose says he spent six hours trying to buy tickets online on Sunday, without any success, as the site kept “bombing out”.
In April and May, Fifa's ticketing system failed, leaving thousands of fans queuing outside ticket centres fuming.
“There is only one system to buy tickets, and that's the Match system, but it's not an efficient, simple system,” says Ambrose. Because of the system failure, people who want to resell their tickets are left without any way of doing so, he adds.
Fifa's media team did not respond to requests for comment. However, the global body's transfer policy, according to its Web site, is: “Ticket-holders may not sell, offer for sale, resell, donate or otherwise transfer their tickets in any way, without the specific prior written approval of Fifa.”
People who have bought too many tickets may ask Fifa to resell the tickets. “Other than through the official ticket resale platform, resale of tickets are prohibited,” says Fifa.
In addition, tickets not bought through official channels are deemed to be invalid, adds the terms and conditions on the Fifa site.
Soccer fans can submit a ticket for resale from 15 April up until three days before the match starts, but cannot sell tickets that have already been printed. In addition, Fifa will charge a 10% administrative fee.
After selling the ticket, fans will only get their money back within four weeks of the last match, which is mid-July, assuming that tickets are resold, as Fifa gives no guarantees.
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