Steady buying as world cup third phase ticketing begins
By Miranda La Rose
Stabroek News
February 2, 2007
The third phase of public ticketing for the upcoming ICC CWC 2007 championships got underway at the local Ticketing Centre in Georgetown yesterday with small crowds throughout the day, a feature which had not been seen since the centre opened in May last year.
ICC Local Organising Committee Finance and Ticketing Manager Chateram Ramdihal said this may be because tickets are being sold on a first-come, first-served basis and buyers are able to obtain their tickets at the time of purchase unlike what obtained in phases one and two of public ticketing.
In phases one and two tickets were purchased online and those tickets, according to Ramdihal, would be delivered by courier later this month.
The tickets have already been printed and sent off to the various ticket centres in the region and to purchasers in other parts of the world. As soon as they arrive at the various centres they would be distributed. Persons who would have bought tickets in these two phases will also receive souvenir tickets.
Phase Three of ticketing will end on April 28 when the final match is played, if tickets are not sold out before then.
Ramdihal said cricket fans can now determine the exact stand, the column in the stand, the row and the seat number they would have.
Tickets are currently available in all the various categories and the party stand for all the matches to be played in Guyana. If someone wants to know where tickets are available information can be found at www.cricketworldcup.com or by visiting the ticket centre at 91 Middle Street, South Cummingsburg, Georgetown or any of the ticket centres in the other host venues.
Category one tickets are US$100; category two, US$75: category three, US$25; and the party stand, US$90.
As part of the drive to ensure that all cricket fans have the chance to buy tickets, the ICC CWC has expanded the number of category three tickets (US$25) by converting a section of the grass mound, which was originally selling for US$90.
In phase three also, an individual may buy a total of 20 tickets (inclusive of phases one and two) for the warm-up, Group Eight and Super Eight Matches and unlimited numbers for the opening ceremony in Jamaica. Tickets for the final match in Barbados were sold out in phases one and two but cricket fans are asked to monitor the ICC CWC website to see if and when tickets might become available based on the addition of temporary seating.
Even though sales were moderate in phases one and two, the ICC CWC West Indies 2007 Inc has reported that sales have already surpassed total ticket sales for the last ICC Cricket World Cup in South Africa.
On Wednesday, an ICC CWC WI 2007 Inc release quoted ICC CWC 2007 Commercial Director Stephen Price as saying that ticketing was "in very good shape, contrary to widespread speculation".
He said that in 2003, South Africa's overall ticketing revenue totalled 81 million rand (US$10.5 million) and sales for the current event have doubled that figure. He said this was based on data made available by the ICC's commercial arm, IDI.
John Davison of Cricket Logistics also confirmed the trend stating that CWC's Official Tour and Travel Operator has sold "four times as many tickets and packages at this stage than for the 2003 ICC Cricket World Cup".
Price said this augurs well for the Caribbean as most of the tickets were sold in the last phase in South Africa. "We expect the same to occur for this tournament, based on West Indian buying patterns. A lot of people within the region have been waiting to pay cash and get their tickets in hand immediately," he said.
Fans worldwide can also go online (www.cricketworldcup.com) and purchase tickets and they even have the advantage of choosing which section of the stadium they want to sit in, provided seating is still available in that area.
Responding to queries regarding the fact that phase three buyers would have their match tickets before persons who applied or ordered in phases one and two, he explained that the tickets were equally valid but persons buying now would not receive souvenir tickets. "Persons who made their purchases in phases one and two will receive special, high-quality souvenir tickets which can be kept as mementoes of this historic occasion. These are currently being prepared and will be ready in mid-February."
Price also disclosed that a number of previously unavailable tickets for the tournament's semi-final fixtures in Jamaica (April 24) and St Lucia (April 25) are now on sale. These are being made available because of a number of tickets have been returned from various contractual obligations to sponsors who had agreed to have them released back into the public ticketing pool if they were not sold within a period of time. "Some sponsors have not exercised their full option on tickets for the most popular matches and subsequently CWC is in a position to make more category one, two and three tickets available to the public for certain matches, including both semi-finals," he said.