The government has announced legislation to outlaw the sale of tickets to sports events at inflated prices – but it’s not good news for football fans.
In September, a BBC investigation exposed a black market selling thousands of Premier League tickets at two to four times the face value.
While the new rules will make it illegal to resell tickets for sports events above the original cost, they will not cover football matches.
Why the new legislation doesn’t apply to football
Football ticket sales in the UK are covered by existing legislation.
The 1994 Criminal Justice and Public Order Act made it an offence to offer for sale tickets to a football match other than by the organisers of the game.
Only clubs or organisers are able to resell tickets on their own platforms if, for instance, season ticket holders are unable to attend.
The Act was designed to cover anti-social behaviour, and with regard to football, was intended to reduce the risk of violence and disorder at matches.
This means football will not be part of the proposed new legislation on ticket sales.
However, the Act applies only to tickets sold in England and Wales.
What’s the black market for football tickets?
The Premier League’s “unauthorised” list of ticket sellers contains more than 50 websites, including Stubhub and Vivid Seats, where Chelsea owner Todd Boehly is a director and investor.
The companies operating the black market resales are registered in countries such as Spain, Dubai, Germany and Estonia.
They are able to freely do this because the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act only applies to a ticket resale occurring within England and Wales, so they are untouchable.
BBC Sport looked at four sites on the list which listed tens of thousands of Premier League tickets.
For example, more than 18,000 tickets were advertised for Arsenal v Nottingham Forest alone – nearly a third of the Emirates’ capacity.
As part of the investigation, we were able to buy tickets easily through the black market for four games.
Prices ranged from £55 to £14,962, often far exceeding face value and usually including a significant booking fee.
All our tickets were transferred digitally, in one instance on the morning of the game, and worked as mobile passes.
The practice has been described as “endemic” in English football, but it’s not going to be stopped.
Why Wimbledon’s exemption could be good news for Man United
Wimbledon has secured an exemption for its debenture tickets, which provide a premium seat on the show courts for five years, along with access to exclusive restaurants and bars.
There are 3,770 seats which can be bought and sold via a trading platform or privately.
This could be positive news for Manchester United, who are considering selling seat licences to finance their proposed new £2bn stadium.
Seat licences see fans pay a certain amount of money over an extended period of time to give them the right to buy the same seat as a season ticket, and potentially sell it on.
While United’s system would not be exactly like Wimbledon’s debentures, the price cap in the new legislation isn’t designed to threaten the development of the UK’s live events venues.
In specific cases, venues should still be able to generate secure, up-front revenue that can be re-invested, such as through seat licences.
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