No One Is Actually Going to the 2010 World Cup
Some of Europe's more football loving nations, including Germany and England, have announced figures regarding how many tickets for the 2010 World Cup they have managed to sell so far.
The English F.A have said they have had to send back 6,000 of their 29,000 ticket allocation, while the German F.A have apparently sold only 1,916 of 21,000 tickets.
Predictably, and - on the surface - understandably, this has lead to the usual media hysteria about safety in South African 2010.
Even usually canny commentators, like Martin Samuel, have been in on the act. However, closer inspection reveals a very different picture.
Take the fact that England have returned 6,000 tickets to FIFA as exhibit one, so to speak. What has been strangely underreported is that half of these were for a potential 3rd v 4th place play-off match.
And, oh yes, the Round of 16 match is oversubscribed and the English FA are hoping to get more tickets. These two things, unfortunately, don't fit into the type of story that the media want to write, so they get ignored.
As for the - on the surface - very low sales by the German FA, well, here's Wolfgang Niersbach - head of the German Soccer Federation - to put it in perspective:
"Sales are normal and similar to the 2002 World Cup, and the comparison with 2002 offers itself because of the similar distance and the resulting costs."
And that '1,916' figure that seems to be quoted everywhere? Well, that's not accurate either. In fact, over 25,000 Germans have ordered tickets for ALL the World Cup 2010 matches.
So, it's not going too badly, is it?
The English F.A have said they have had to send back 6,000 of their 29,000 ticket allocation, while the German F.A have apparently sold only 1,916 of 21,000 tickets.
Predictably, and - on the surface - understandably, this has lead to the usual media hysteria about safety in South African 2010.
Even usually canny commentators, like Martin Samuel, have been in on the act. However, closer inspection reveals a very different picture.
Take the fact that England have returned 6,000 tickets to FIFA as exhibit one, so to speak. What has been strangely underreported is that half of these were for a potential 3rd v 4th place play-off match.
And, oh yes, the Round of 16 match is oversubscribed and the English FA are hoping to get more tickets. These two things, unfortunately, don't fit into the type of story that the media want to write, so they get ignored.
As for the - on the surface - very low sales by the German FA, well, here's Wolfgang Niersbach - head of the German Soccer Federation - to put it in perspective:
"Sales are normal and similar to the 2002 World Cup, and the comparison with 2002 offers itself because of the similar distance and the resulting costs."
And that '1,916' figure that seems to be quoted everywhere? Well, that's not accurate either. In fact, over 25,000 Germans have ordered tickets for ALL the World Cup 2010 matches.
So, it's not going too badly, is it?
Labels: england, germany, holland, martin samuel, ticket sales
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posted by mark_s at 6:36 PM
2 Comments:
Swiss reporting very low uptake of tickets here.
It is sad and think the low turnout is also due to all the negative reports about crime and fans being told that they have to wear Stab Proof Vests.
The Soccer World Cup can be a fantastic experience, one not to be missed.
Safari and Soccer, Great !
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