Friendly Match Against Brazil on the 2nd of Next Month
700,000 Tickets Sold Out Instantly
35,000 Won Tickets Resold for 350,000 Won
[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Byung-don] The "Son Heung-min effect" is causing a stir even in the scalping market. The ticket prices for the friendly match between the national football teams of South Korea and Brazil have skyrocketed.
On the 25th, the Korea Football Association began selling tickets for the friendly match between South Korea and Brazil, sponsored by Hana Bank, to be held at Seoul World Cup Stadium from 5 PM on the 25th until 8 PM on June 2nd. This is the first June A-match since Son Heung-min, the Premier League top scorer, returned to Korea, and since it is a match against the world’s number one ranked team, a ticket booking war among football fans was expected even before sales began.
As soon as sales started, about 700,000 people accessed the site simultaneously, causing the booking site to crash. Even around 7:30 PM, two and a half hours after sales began, there were still 200,000 people waiting to access the site. Even those who managed to get through faced payment errors, making ticket booking extremely difficult. As of the morning of the 26th, tickets for the Brazil match are sold out.
On trading sites like Junggonara, posts offering to transfer or sell tickets for the Brazil match are continuously being uploaded. Entire pages are filled with posts selling Brazil match tickets. Two second-class A tickets priced at 60,000 KRW each are being sold for 250,000 KRW, and four consecutive first-class A tickets priced at 150,000 KRW each are being sold for 1,400,000 KRW (350,000 KRW per ticket). There are even sellers listing Red Zone tickets priced at 35,000 KRW for 350,000 KRW. They explain that after confirming payment, they send the tickets via the mobile ticket gifting function.
In particular, the use of macro programs that automatically and repeatedly input information on the booking site has made it virtually impossible to book tickets for popular events. Macro programs have become so common that they can be purchased online for about 5,000 KRW, and misuse cases are increasing. The Minor Offenses Act, which should regulate scalping, has not been amended even once since 1984. While on-site scalping is considered a minor offense punishable by a fine of up to 200,000 KRW if caught, there are no penalty regulations for online sales activities.
Various measures such as security code input and purchase limits per person have been introduced but have shown little effect. In March, bills such as the "Partial Amendment to the Performance Act" and the "Partial Amendment to the National Sports Promotion Act," which restrict the use of macros when purchasing concert and sports event tickets, were proposed but are still pending in the National Assembly.
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