Massive demand for London 2012 Olympic Games tickets
The application process for London 2012 Olympic tickets closed last week and early indications show that over 20 million tickets were applied for, with around 1.8 million people submitting requests for tickets.
Applications were received for every session in every sport, and across every price point. Over 50% of the 650 sessions are oversubscribed, meaning tickets will be allocated via ballots. A total 6.6 million tickets went on sale to the public as part of this process, with over 95% of applications coming from the UK.
Track Cycling, Rhythmic Gymnastics, Triathlon, Modern Pentathlon, Equestrian (cross-country) and both the Opening and Closing Ceremonies are the first sell-out events from the initial public application process. This means these events will go to ballot – ensuring the fairest possible ticket distribution – along with the majority of the sessions in Swimming and Tennis.
In what is the biggest ticketing exercise ever undertaken in the UK, the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) will now check and de-duplicate applications before running ballots across sessions that are oversubscribed and then processing applications.
LOCOG Chair Sebastian Coe commented: ‘We are thrilled with the response right across the board, in all sports and all sessions. Certain events have seen massive demand – for example the Opening Ceremony, which is more than 10 times oversubscribed – so there will understandably be disappointment and we will find a way to go back to those people with other tickets.
‘What is most encouraging is that the majority of applications are for multiple tickets and for several sports, which shows that friends and family are planning to go to the Games together.’
Money will be taken from accounts from 10 May 2011, and customers will receive confirmation of exactly which tickets they have been allocated in June 2011. Customers who were not successful in their initial application will be given further opportunities to apply for remaining tickets in June and July.
Applications for Paralympic Games tickets will open on 9 September 2011.
People are urged to be aware of unauthorised websites that claim to sell tickets to London 2012. LOCOG has a website checker that shows whether a website is genuine or not.
