[imagesource: Computicket/Instagram]

This morning, like many others, I sat watching the Computicket countdown clock heading towards 9AM, desperate to get my hands on some tickets for the Match in Africa 6.

Tickets ranged from R150 right through to R1 950, with each person able to buy a maximum of six tickets. Surely, given that Cape Town Stadium holds in excess of 50 000 spectators, I would be rewarded for my diligence?

[I’m not daft enough to believe that all 50 000 tickets went on sale to the general public, because we know how it works with corporate tickets and hospitality packages, by the way.]

Nope – despite instantly clicking through to buy tickets, I was told that I had been redirected to a ‘waiting room’, before the bad news that the tickets were sold out was delivered just over 10 minutes later.

The same thing happened to friends of mine that tried their luck, and tennis fans around the country clearly suffered a similar fate.

Sport24 has a compilation of some irate reactions, as does the Citizen. One tweet, in particular, stood out, which was in response to Computicket’s announcement that tickets were sold out:

Now I have no problem with that person who buys six tickets for R150 and flogs the other five to mates at a slightly increased price to cover their ticket.

After all, five tickets sold at R180 and you’re home and dry, and you went through the effort of battling the ticketing gods, but what the hell is happening with tickets going for R22 500?

The answer is a simple one, reports CapeTalk, in a story that was already published way back in July:

CapeTalk listener Elle saw tickets advertised on Viagogo and paid a total of R40,700 for five “lower tier” tickets.

That worked out at R6,300 per ticket, plus a R36 delivery fee for each ticket and an additional booking fee (for each ticket) of R1,813.

However, after reading a number of unfavourable reviews of Viagogo and learning that tickets would not be going on sale until September, Elle contacted Viagogo to request a refund – she also cancelled her credit card.

But Viagogo told Elle she cannot get a refund for the tickets.

Event organisers confirmed that, at the time, there was no way that Viagogo’s sellers were in possession of tickets, and nor could they guarantee any kind of pre-sale access to tickets.

Doesn’t sound ideal.

I visited the site again today just after 1PM and checked on what’s currently available for the Roger / Rafa showdown.

Clearly, I wasn’t the only one:

That’s 1 126 people checking in during the last hour alone, if you believe what the site tells you. When Wendy Knowler looked into it on behalf of CapeTalk and Elle, she advised caution:

The site creates a sense of urgency, giving you eight minutes to confirm or lose the tickets, and claiming that less than 1% of tickets to the match are still available, out of 55,000. All lies!

Proceed with caution.

Choosing two tickets sat together, here’s what I found:

In total, there were six options available.

It’s important to note that these could be legit, as tickets have now gone on sale to the general public. However, given that some ‘tickets’ have been on sale for months, you can make your own call on that front.

For those who are considering Instaticket, another resale site, you’ll find some very pricey options listed for the Match in Africa 6.

Here’s the thing – if you head to the HelloPeter reviews for Instaticket, you’ll be met with general outrage.

Some selected quotes, with both reviews from this week:

Scammed for the 1st time in my life. Bought 4 tickets for the Nadal/Federer Game. No contact number; address falsified and not valid on google…

That was from Anna-Mart K, and this below is from Karin O:

I purchased a ticket via the Instaticket website on 13 July 2019. I paid for it, and the money was debited from my account. Subsequently, I was alerted by media reports that tickets sales would only happen in Sept 2019, and people / companies who sold such tickets for the Match for Africa tennis event in Cape Town in Feb 2020, was doing so illegally. I have emailed Instaticket on more than 1 occasion. My son in-law also did. They are just not responding to email communication and I am out of pocket. Let me just say it was not a small amount either.

I just really have run out of words and actions on what to do about this situation. Not sure if anyone from Instaticket will respond to this or if anyone else had a similar experience. There is no telephone contact number on their web site. Now I understand official tickets will be sold by Computicket. Where does that leave me now?

There are some glowing, five-star reviews, although one person on HelloPeter remarks that Instaticket’s “marketing team then create false accounts on sites such as hello peter [sic] and write glowing reviews about what an amazing experience they had using Instaticket”.

Again, Instaticket may well be selling legitimate tickets at this time, having secured some earlier this morning, but what did the buyer who snapped up tickets back in July actually end up purchasing?

The moral of the story here is to exercise caution. Your mate on Facebook who is selling some tickets he landed at a slight mark-up? Possibly legit, and if he isn’t, you know where to find him.

As for the rest? Well, the ball is in your court.

Let’s finish on a high, with Sport24 getting an official response from Janine Händel, CEO of the Roger Federer Foundation:

“To all the fans out there who have booked – or tried to book – a ticket or a hospitality package this morning for The Match in Africa 6 event taking place in Cape Town next year, we are overwhelmed by the enthusiastic reaction on our ticket sales and we sincerely thank you for the overwhelming support.

Lines were opened up by Computicket at 09h00 and within a record time of less than 10 minutes, the tickets were sold. To ensure that everybody has a good view, the event is running with an availability of 48,000 seats.

We are considering adding more grandstands. Please keep an eye out for announcements if more tickets are available. Also note that the event will also be televised”.

Give the people what they want!

There may be hope yet.

[sources:capetalk&hellopeter&sport24]