Controversial ticketing service Ticketek have claimed the system for supporters to secure grand final tickets ran ‘as planned’ despite Collingwood fans flooding social media by the score with complaints about missing out on seats to next Saturday’s match.
Magpies barrackers, many of whom have paid hundreds of dollars in membership fees for a guaranteed grand final ticket, have been left in the cold by alleged errors from Ticketek.
Widespread reports suggest fans who registered for ballots allocating seats at the MCG for the grand final have been either unable to secure tickets, or scarier still, have had money taken from bank accounts without a ticket provided in return.
The Magpies offer tiers of membership fees to their more than 100,000-strong membership base, with the highest supposed to be guaranteed seats to any grand final featuring Collingwood; some fans pay upwards of $1000 a year.
Each competing club receives 17,000 tickets for members to attend the grand final, with the other seats at the 100,000-capacity stadium going to Melbourne Cricket Club and AFL members, supporters of other clubs and corporate partners.
“There are major issues with Ticketek and the ballot system for GF seats,” a message sent to 3AW reporter Jacqui Felgate from a Collingwood supporter read.
“I am a Priority 1 Collingwood Member with a guaranteed seat at the GF (just not guaranteed where the seats are).
“The ballot was yesterday. I don’t have a seat, even after registering for the ballot and receiving both SMS notification and Ticketek account notification that my registration was successful.
“I buy a membership in good faith that I will be guaranteed a seat at the GF if Collingwood makes it, and now they have, a ticketing error on Ticketek’s side has seen many P1 members without a ticket they were guaranteed to receive.”
It is believed that would-be buyers who selected ‘no standing room’ in the ticket registration process were then not billeted with tickets if they were then assigned standing room tickets in the allocation system.
Also controversial is Ticketek’s awarding of tickets to the grand final with no distinction between the Magpies’ membership tiers, with some ‘Legends’ members receiving only standing room tickets while others at lower levels – and fees – secured prime seats.
The reaction to the scandal on social media was swift and brutal, with Ticketek described as a ‘shambles’ and the ballot system as ‘a complete joke’.
However, in a statement released on Sunday evening, the service defended its handling of the allocation system.
“Ticketek wants to assure all Collingwood members that the Ballot process for the AFL Grand Final ran as planned and as per the instruction from the AFL, Collingwood Football Club and the MCG without issue,” the statement reads.
“The Ballot results will be published at 9am (AEST) Monday 25 September.”
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