Wimbledon Ticket Resellers Seatwave, Viagogo Caught 'Breaching Regulations'

Two major online secondary ticket operators "have been caught by Wimbledon breaching regulations by trading non-debenture seats," according to Charles Sale of the London DAILY MAIL. Viagogo and Seatwave "have been contacted by lawyers" acting for the All England Club, and forced "to take the offending tickets off their websites." A club spokesperson said, "They were discovered selling tickets apart from debentures and we have taken immediate action.'' This "will be a particular embarrassment for Viagogo," which has official ticket partnerships in place with Roland Garros for the French Open and the ATP Tour Finals at London’s O2. Secondary ticketing "has been described as a ‘massive concern’ for the All England Club" after overseas tennis fans were "duped into buying" more than £20,000 ($30,000) worth of fake tickets before this year’s Championships "from fraudulent sites posing as official suppliers" (DAILY MAIL, 7/1).