DUBAI: The International Cricket Council (ICC), announced on Thursday that cricket fans have demanded more than 1 million tickets for next year’s World Cup in England, surpassing its expectations.
As a part of its ‘Cricket Family Ballot’ which was launched on May 8 this year, all individuals in the England and Wales Cricket Board’s (ECB) database of county cricket members, previous ticket buying customers, fans, volunteers and associated partners got the first opportunity to apply for match tickets.
As a result, the tickets of 42 out of the 48 matches of the competition will be awarded to fans through the Cricket Family Ballot and the Public Ballot.
The Public Ballot will open on August 1 this year, when the ICC would release the tickets to be sold to the general public. Tickets for all matches at every price band will be available through it, with limited allocation for the most popular games.
The India-Pakistan match at Old Trafford and the Final at Lord’s received the most number of applications, which roughly comes up to a whopping 300,000 tickets.
With matches across the schedule recording impressive numbers, CWC19 Managing Director expressed satisfaction at the outcome.
“The response has been fantastic, not only domestically in England and Wales, but from fans around the world, which gives us enormous satisfaction as we work towards making this a truly global celebration of cricket.
“We expected a high demand for tickets, so we are pleased we could reward the players, coaches, umpires and supporters who make up the ‘Cricket Family’ via priority access.
“We look forward to seeing the excitement continue when the Public Ballot opens later this summer.”
Ticket prices are expected to start at £6 ($8) per individual. A family of 4 can get the opportunity to watch selected group games for £44 ($58.58).
The remaining tickets will go on general sale on a first-come, first-served basis later in the year.
The ICC will also be launching an official reselling platform on its website soon, for those fans who win tickets through the ballots but won’t be able to make it.
Hospitality tickets will be available directly through venues and will give fans the opportunity to secure a place at the tournament in addition to enjoying the best matchday experience each stadium has to offer.
