Almost 80,000 tickets to the Rugby World Cup are being sold illegitimately online and will leave buyers facing "bitter and costly disappointment" at the turnstiles, fans are being warned, according to Dan Hyde of the London TELEGRAPH. Many of the tournament's biggest games, which start with England vs. Fiji at Twickenham on Sept. 18, "are selling out on the official website." Ticket touts have responded by advertising seats for as much as £500 ($770) on unofficial portals, "hoping to lure those missing out." Research by MarkMonitor, which helps big brands identify online counterfeits, "found 78,752 listings by unregistered sellers." By comparison, there are 50,000 official tickets still on sale of the 2.5 million total, "with more to be released soon." Fans "are allowed to resell tickets only through the official event portal at tickets.rugbyworldcup.com." All tickets listed on other reseller websites "may be seized or cancelled without refund or compensation, according to the tournament organisers." People who buy from an unofficial seller "risk being turned away at the ground." Mike Andrews, of the National Trading Standards eCrime team, said, "We are warning fans not to succumb to last-minute Rugby World Cup fever and fall foul of scammers and rogue ticket agents who will be looking to cash in on their enthusiasm" (TELEGRAPH, 9/8).
SOCIAL GUIDELINES: The BBC reported former England head coach Clive Woodward "warned current boss Stuart Lancaster that social media could derail his side's World Cup campaign." Woodward described the risk of "one stupid tweet" to squad harmony as "the new enemy." He said, "If you allow one player to be distracted, it can all come tumbling down. Don't let the players be distracted. It could be the media, their family, sponsors, ticket requests, anything." England reportedly handed its World Cup squad social media guidelines, "keen to avoid any unnecessary distractions" (BBC, 9/7).
