Tickets for the upcoming Europa League final are reportedly being sold for as much as £23,000 each on Vivid Seats, a ticket resale platform that is partly owned by Chelsea co-owner Todd Boehly. The massive prices have ignited considerable anger among football supporters.
Manchester United and Tottenham are set to compete in the highly anticipated final in Bilbao on May 21st. The match is scheduled to take place at the San Mames Stadium, which has a capacity of just over 53,000 spectators.
Each finalist club, Manchester United and Spurs, received an allocation of 15,000 tickets. Under Uefa`s `Fans First` scheme, the cheapest official tickets were priced starting at £34. General public tickets, available through Uefa`s ballot, had face values ranging from £55 to £204 across three price categories.
However, tickets appearing on the Vivid Seats resale platform, where Boehly holds a stake, are being listed at exorbitant prices just a week before the final. Reports, such as one from The Price of Football, indicate that `prime seats` located along the halfway line are being offered for sale on the site for a staggering £22,738 each. Other options listed include Category 1 tickets priced as high as £17,054.
This massive price discrepancy has drawn widespread anger from football fans. Comments on social media included reactions like: “Absolutely disgraceful,” “Everything wrong with top level football right there,” “Unfortunately this is where the tourist league is going,” and “Shocked but not surprised.”
Chelsea Football Club reportedly declined to comment on the matter.
Todd Boehly, who became a minority owner at Chelsea in May 2022, is also a director and investor in Vivid Seats. This connection has been labeled a “conflict of interest” by the Chelsea Supporters Trust (CST). The CST highlighted that Boehly`s company, Eldridge Industries, owns 41 percent of the US-based ticket resale site. Although Vivid Seats is legally allowed to operate internationally, it is reportedly prohibited for use by users within the UK.
In an open letter sent to the Premier League in March, the CST urged the league to “act and investigate” the issue of ticket touting at Chelsea games, citing Boehly`s link to Vivid Seats. The letter stated, “As a director of Chelsea FC and part-owner, Mr Boehly`s connection with Vivid Seats is totally inappropriate and significantly undermines the efforts of Chelsea FC, the Premier League, and the Metropolitan Police to combat ticket touting.” The CST added that despite attempting to contact Boehly and his representatives multiple times regarding supporter concerns, they received no response, and thousands of tickets allegedly remain for sale on the Vivid Seats website.
A Uefa spokesperson commented on the situation, stating, “Uefa strongly urges fans not to purchase tickets on the secondary market. Ticket sales to the general public and fans of the teams who have reached the finals are carried out exclusively by Uefa.”
