A slight problem - I realise that I had no charger for my English phone and I don't really want to be heading to Wembley without a phone.
I finally got round to phoning Lee at about 11:00 to arrange a time to meet. Twice I tried him and I simply couldn't get the number to work. Started to panic a little - that number was the only way for me to contact the person that supposedly has my ticket and I had yet to have any direct contact with him.
Fortunately, on the third attempt, his phone rang, and the first thing he said to me when he answered was that he has my ticket - just the words I wanted to hear. We have a meeting place and time arranged. I can see myself getting down there really early just to soak up the atmosphere.
Then Mandy and Jason saved me by digging out their old charger for me and driving it to where I am. Another problem solved.
Prices for black market tickets are bonkers - here is an article from the Manchester Evening News:
Hot ticket: Fans paying up to £10,000 to see Manchester United's Champions League clash with Barcelona at Wembley
May 28, 2011
Manchester United's showdown with Barcelona has become the most in-demand football match ever – with tickets changing hands for an astonishing £10,000.
Desperate fans have been handing over 30 TIMES the face value of the tickets during a mad scramble for seats at tonight's showpiece Champions League final.
Brazen touts flocked to Old Trafford offering fans huge sums of cash for their tickets as soon as they picked them up from the ground. Furious United officials were powerless to prevent them as they stood just off club land, ready to pounce.
Online ticket agencies were cashing in on the scramble - with one charging an eye-watering £20,302.85p for two tickets, including a booking fee of £2,500.
The winners of the Wembley clash will be crowned champions of Europe - and the fact it includes two of the world's biggest clubs has sparked a frenzy.
The eve-of-match price of tickets has soared beyond the previous record of £8,000 for the Reds' clash with Chelsea in the 2008 final in Moscow.
Experts estimate the final will generate £322m and boost London's economy to the tune of £45m.
The rush was triggered when governing body Uefa revealed both clubs would be handed a paltry allocation of 25,000 for the final at the 86,000 capacity stadium.
A further 25,000 were dished out to Uefa's 'football family' with 11,000 more going to fans via a ballot.
Thousands of those are thought to have ended up on the black market.
One tout contacted by the M.E.N on an 0161 number offered us a ticket for £3,000 last night.
Manchester Central MP Tony Lloyd, a United fan, stopped short of criticising Uefa but demanded tighter controls on touts.
“It's unacceptable that tickets are changing hands for these sums of money,” he said. “If it's not enough for a small house these days, it's enough to get a decent mortgage. This has to be addressed.”
Mr Lloyd, who will be at the match, added: “With it being United in England, the demand was always going to be more than the allocation.”
Fans' groups hit out at the way tickets have been distributed.
Duncan Drasdo, from the Manchester United Supporters Trust, said: “There is no reward for loyalty and too many are going to corporate sponsors.
“They make enough money out of the tournament and the tickets should be for the fans – they can make their money elsewhere.”
Some Reds are thought to have sold their tickets to touts but Mr Drasdo added: “If people are lucky enough to get a ticket and they sell it it's quite sad - but if you're offered enough to pay for next year's season ticket it might be hard to refuse.”
One United fan faced heartache after two tickets were stolen from his car as he stopped to change a flat tyre in Stretford.
Win or lose the Reds, who won a record 19th Premier League title this season, will take to the streets of Manchester on Monday morning on an open top bus for a homecoming parade.
Officials expect a crowd of around 100,000 that could rise to 150,000 if United secure glory in the capital.
No comments:
Post a Comment