Buying tickets for concerts, festivals, and sporting matches
Is your top-listened artist going to perform in Germany? Is your favourite sports team playing their next match in Spain? The first step to avoid missing these events is to buy your tickets. The event organisers generally designate one or several websites as official ticket sellers. But be aware of unauthorised ticket resale platforms! Not only are “second-hand tickets” more expensive, but you run the risk of purchasing one that is fraudulent. Follow our advice to book your tickets for a big event, concert, or sporting match risk-free.
Prioritise official sellers and re-sellers when buying your tickets
Ticket sales
Each event has one or several official ticket sellers. It may be the organiser themselves who publishes the ticket site, or they might partner with an outside platform who agrees to participate as the official seller. On these platforms, ticket prices correspond with the price initially set by the organiser. Once all tickets have been purchased, the box office will display “tickets sold out”. This is the end of the first sales phase.
Ticket resales
An external company or even individuals who bought tickets during the first sales phase may decide to resell them for profit. This practice often results in excessively high ticket prices.
If you’re looking for tickets for a sold-out event, it’s best to use official resale platforms. Check whether the event organiser has designated a “ticket exchange” where consumers can safely resell their tickets. Prioritise making your purchases on this type of platform.
How are ticket resales regulated across Europe?
The resale of tickets by any company not authorised by the organiser is prohibited in France in order to moderate risks and inhibit the black market. Consequently, sites that resell tickets at a price higher than their face value without authorisation are in violation of French law and may be liable to a fine of up to 15,000 euros.
Belgium has banned organised ticket resales. Only vendors authorised by the event organiser are allowed to sell tickets. If a conflict comes up at the last minute such that you wish to resell your ticket, you are authorised to do so under Belgian law on the condition that you only do so on occasion and you don’t turn a profit.
The Italian Competition Authority has imposed a fine of almost 20 million euros on the Colosseum’s ticketing services and tourism platforms. The reason for this action is the use of bots to buy large quantities of tickets to be resold at a higher price. As a result, visitors were consistently unable to find officially priced tickets.
What do you risk if you purchase your ticket from an unauthorised reseller?
Having to pay a higher price than the nominal value of your ticket
Receiving invalid or false tickets. If the ticket was purchased from an unauthorised reseller, the organiser may not accept your ticket the day of the event and refuse your entry
Receiving a copy of a ticket that has been resold several times. A scammer may sell the same ticket to several people, and unless you are the first to arrive at the venue, your ticket will not provide you entry.
Receiving tickets that are nominative and impossible to modify. If you purchased tickets from an individual online, check that the ticket does not still hold their name, or that you can modify whose name appears on it.
Not receiving your tickets on time. The seller may send you the tickets one day before the event, the day of, or even after it has already taken place.
Not receiving your tickets at all.
How do I distinguish between authorised and unauthorised ticket sellers?
Search specifically for the official vendor
Rather than typing “tickets for X event” into a search engine, check the official event website. It should indicate how you can obtain tickets along with a list of authorised sellers and resellers.
Example: An annual festival’s website opens their internal ticketing platform beginning a specific date.
Example: A sports club’s website provides an external link that takes you to the official ticketing platform.
Warning: Never click on the first results that come up when you search for tickets online! Just because a site appears first does not necessarily mean that it is the official ticket seller for the event.
Compare different sales platforms:
Compare the prices between several platforms who sell the same type of ticket. If the price is much higher on one site, it is most likely an unofficial reseller. Also pay attention to tickets that are abnormally inexpensive: this may be a sign of a potentially fraudulent ticket seller.
Example: Tickets to see the World Cup Finale are being sold for 50 euros
Be sure to consult reviews published by other customers via online forums. Testimonies from other fans may help you verify the reliability of a reseller and avoid falling for scams. If you make a purchase via a resale platform, you must know who you’re really buying from.
Read carefully before buying
Check that your ticket contains certain required elements: the date of the event, the name or title of the event, the price of the ticket, the ticket category, the seat number (unless your ticket is part of general admission) and the identity of the seller. At the time of purchase, you should also find on the website legal information regarding the absence of a right to withdrawal, procedures for handling complaints, the time frame in which your ticket will be sent to you, etc. An absence of any of these elements could be a sign that the seller is unofficial.
Good to know: The EU’s 2022 Digital Services Act imposes greater transparency on online services and marketplaces. A platform that connects sellers and buyers is required to identify the companies who sell the tickets via its intermediary. Even before tickets can be put up for sale on its website, it must know the name and contact information of the seller. This information should also be visible to buyers.
Finally, don’t forget to check the general conditions of sale on the site through which you’re purchasing. You should also understand the details of the price: does it include service fees or additional insurance?
Warning: Don’t rely solely on logos and official branding displayed on a site. These elements can be easily reproduced and used by a scammer to give the appearance that the site is official.
Too late, you already bought your ticket from a fraudulent site… What can you do now?
You have spent a lot of money to buy a ticket for a popular concert, but then you realise that the ticket is likely fake. What should you do?
Report the site. You should inform the event organiser of the fraud, as well as French fraud control authorities via the SignalConso platform.
Request a refund from the seller. You can dispute the payment as long as it was made by card. Ask your bank to reimburse you via the chargeback procedure. Make sure to keep all receipts and exchanges with the seller as evidence when contesting.
If your ticket seems to be a counterfeit, file a police report. However, be careful: counterfeiting is punishable by law!
If the organiser cancels the event, you are entitled to a refund.
Wait until you receive an email or official communication from the organiser. It will instruct you how to get a refund for your ticket. The refund will be made either by the organiser itself or by the intermediary ticket seller.
Each sales platform will have its own cancellation policy. Check the general conditions of sale. The seller may specify that service fees, ticket delivery and insurance are excluded from refunds.
The organiser will not reimburse you for other advance bookings (lodging, transportation, etc.). If these reservations were made separately from your ticket booking, you should check the cancellation conditions for each service.
The organiser modifies the event
Instead of cancellation, the event may be rescheduled to another date or relocated to another venue. The organiser must inform you promptly of the new date and/or new venue.
If the new conditions do not suit you, you have the right to cancel your ticket. The organiser can then compensate you either with a voucher or a ticket refund.
Something came up and I can no longer attend the event. Can I cancel my ticket and get a refund?
A ticket purchased for an event on a fixed date cannot be cancelled free of charge. You do not benefit from the 14 day right to withdrawal for this type of purchase. Think carefully before buying your ticket, especially if the event is a year or more away.
This is not the case if you have purchased cancellation insurance, or if the possibility of cancellation was explicitly mentioned at the time of booking. Consult the seller’s general terms and conditions to find out how to cancel your ticket. Check whether you are covered via the credit card used for payment. Beware: even cancellation insurance that you have paid extra for sometimes contains very broad exclusion conditions!
Buying a ticket + transport + accommodation package
To reserve your place at a concert or festival, you have the option of organised travel. In this case, you buy what’s known as a package.
Example: For a festival in Belgium, one company provides an entry ticket, a round-trip bus ticket, and a tent rental on-site.
With this type of package travel, you benefit from better protection if the event is cancelled.
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Innovation Council and Small and Medium-sized Enterprises Executive Agency (EISMEA). Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them..