By Lisa Flueckiger, Contributing Reporter
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The registration to get some of the 7.5 million tickets on sale for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro has opened on January 15th for those residing in Brazil. After registration the tickets will be assigned by lot in March.
Ticket prices for the biggest sports event in the world vary from R$40 for qualifying rounds of football (soccer) or rowing for example to R$1,200 for events such as the basketball or 100m track and field final.
Popular Olympic sports such as tennis costs between R$220-700 for the final, whereas the beach volleyball final goes for R$350-1,200. The athletics qualifying competition has prices starting at R$100 and swimming at R$160.
Yet, according to the Organizing Committee 3.8 million tickets and therefore more than half will cost up to R$70. In terms of payment, only debit and credit Visa cards will be accepted, as Visa sponsors the event. Paying via bank transfer or any other forms of payment won’t be possible.
In Brazil, the ticketing process will be divided into four stages. Now, the registration is open until March here. Then the registered can choose the competition they want to attend and the tickets will be distributed by a draw. In July, a second draw will take place, only open for those who registered during the first phase.
The remaining tickets will then go on sale online in October 2015. Only the last phase will be via a regular sale at the ticket offices, where other forms of payment will be accepted. This phase will start shortly before the event in June 2016.
“We will have a fair and transparent process in line with our concept ‘Games for Everyone’, one of the pillars of the Organizing Committee Rio 2016,” Renato Ciuchini, Commercial executive director of Rio 2016 told the press.
People from outside Brazil will have to purchase tickets at authorized vendors in their residential countries. A list of all official re-sellers will be published in March.
Tickets for the Paralympic Games will go on sale at a later stage in 2015.