Ticketmaster have introduced anti-ticket touting measures to prevent tickets for Ed Sheeran's 2018 Irish concert tour being resold online.
Tickets for the seven Irish concerts go on sale Saturday July 8th, at 9am, with demand expected to be big for the English singer.
Ticketmaster have stated the person booking tickets must also attend the concert, in an effort to clamp down on tickets being bought in bulk and then resold at much higher rates online.
The new rules state the person booking the tickets must give their name, which will appear on the tickets, and then will have to show ID confirming they are the original person who bought the tickets when attending the concert.
The amount of tickets one person can buy will be “strictly limited to four per person” according to Ticketmaster.
Ticketmaster have said “the lead booker must be attending the event and show valid photo ID upon entry”. If a person attending a concert with tickets cannot prove they bought them by providing identification they will not be permitted entry.
The rules will mean anyone looking to buy tickets to any of the Ed Sheeran concert dates as a present for someone else will have to attend the concert themselves as well.
“Ticket will become immediately invalid if resold or offered for resale” the company said in a statement.
People attempting to buy tickets online in the run up to the concert should also be aware of the new rules, as they may be sold a ticket which they will not be able to use.
Ed Sheeran will play seven concerts in Ireland next year in Cork, Galway, Belfast and Dublin.
The singer’s promotion company also released a warning against the practice of ticket touting, when the concert dates were announced in June.
”Ed and his team have a strict stance against anyone using secondary ticketing websites for profit. On this tour, any tickets that are resold will not be valid – this means no profit to touts and no one getting ripped off.”
The Irish tour will begin on May 4th in Cork, at the Páirc Uí Chaoimh stadium, before hitting Belfast and then Galway for two dates in Pearse Stadium, finishing with two nights in Dublin in the Phoenix Park on May 16th and 18th.
Queues for tickets have already begun to form by ticket teller stalls in Galway, since 9.30pm on Thursday night.
The Jervis Shopping Centre in Dublin on Henry St are expecting a queue for tickets to start forming on Friday evening, in advance of the centre opening at 9am on Saturday morning.
