December 14 – The first ten days of the third ticketing sales phase for the 2010 World Cup has seen the number of tickets applied for hit the 500,000 mark, FIFA revealed today.
According to football’s governing body, 386,300 of those tickets were requested by South African residents (77 per cent of the total applications), while 114,237 tickets applied for came from the rest of the world.
“In comparison with the previous editions of the FIFA World Cups, the latest ticket applications figures are impressive,” said Horst Schmidt, chairman of the FIFA ticketing sub-committee.
“The number of domestic applications have increased significantly.”
Danny Jordaan, the chief executive of South Africa 2010, said: ”By buying a ticket, South Africans buy not only a seat to watch a match, but also their spot in South African history.”
South African fans pay $19 (£11.70) for the cheapest seats at group matches.
International prices start at $80 (£49.25).
The United States stills heads the list of foreign countries for this phase with 22,942 tickets, followed by the United Kingdom (20,232), Mexico (7,981), Germany (7,697) , Australia (6,277) and Brazil (4,760).
The current sales phase, where around a million tickets are available, runs until January 22, 2010.
Local Organising Committee chairman Irvin Khoza said the upsurge in ticket sales bodes well for the success of the tournament.
He said: ”The latest developments around the tickets sales are positive, but we will forever call on our people to buy team-specific tickets.
“We made a commitment that all African teams would be supported.
“The World Cup is on our doorstep.”
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