By Mark Baber
October 11 – The first round of World Cup ticket applications closed yesterday with 6,164,682 ticket requests, 70.86% of them from Brazil. As demand is greatly exceeding supply, FIFA has said it will organise a lottery for various matches. Applications from elderly persons, students and members of the “Bolsa Familia” will go into a special lottery for 300,000 tickets.
The priority being given to the poorer sections of the Brazilian community was written into the 2014 FIFA World Cup Bill and members of the Bolsa Família include those who are part of a massive social welfare program of the Brazilian government, put in place by the former president Lula, which is reckoned to be the largest conditional cash transfer program in the world, covering 26% of the population and is reported to have led to a sharp reduction in the number of people in poverty.
Most requested games the opening match in Sao Paulo (726,067 requests), the Brazilian team’s matches and the final in the Maracanã stadium (751,165 requests).
Successful applicants will know if they have tickets by November 4. Ticket buyers will need to be careful to have sufficient funds available on their selected payment method as if a payment request fails their tickets will be reallocated.
FIFA have announced the number of ticket applications by country of residency:
1. Brazil (4,368,029)
2. USA (374,065)
3. Argentina (266,937)
4. Germany (134,899)
5. Chile (102,288)
6. England (96,780)
7. Australia (88,082)
8. Japan (69,806)
9. Colombia (55,379)
10. Canada (49,968)
The second ticket sales window will be from 5 November 2013 to 28 November 2013 with tickets allocated on a first-come, first-served basis, subject to availability.
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