Euroleague Basketball and CSKA Moscow, host of the 2005 Euroleague Final Four, today announced an unprecedented agreement with Tickets.com that provides basketball fans worldwide with equal access to purchase tickets to the Euroleague Final Four in Moscow, May 6-8.
Beginning this Saturday, December 11, 2004, fans can purchase tickets on-line, at www.f4tickets.com. In addition, a direct link is available on all Euroleague club and league websites, as well as through euroleague.net. This service is available in five different languages: English, Russian, Italian, Spanish and French.
‘The Euroleague Final Four has become one of the premier sporting events in the world,’ said Euroleague consultant Marshall Glickman. ‘In the past, the majority of the tickets have been set aside until only three weeks before the event, once the four teams were qualified. While a limited number of tickets will continue to be held for the clubs, the majority of tickets will now be available on-line, over six months in advance, no matter where you live or what price category you are interested in. And, we are pleased that CSKA is offering a full range of ticket prices, to accommodate any budget.’
This season, 600 tickets will be set aside for each participating team, compared to 1,200 tickets per team for last year’s Euroleague Final Four in Tel Aviv and 2,000 tickets per team for the 2003 Euroleague Final Four in Barcelona. Moscow’s Olympisky Arena, home of this year’s Final Four, has a basketball capacity for 13,458 spectators, and approximately 400 media seats. Additional tickets will be held for guests of Euroleague and host CSKA Moscow. This results in over 7,000 tickets available this Saturday for Euroleague fans worldwide. Ticket prices for these exciting two days of competition will range between 25 – 1100 euros for the 4-game package.
Fans that do not have access to the internet may also purchase tickets over the phone by calling CSKA Moscow’s Euroleague Final Four Ticket Hotline, at +7-095-250-77-93. Fans in Moscow also can purchase tickets at the offices of CSKA Moscow.
Following Euroelague’s recent announcement of its historic agreement with FIBA, which recognizes Euroleague as the exclusive organizer of the top professional basketball competitions in Europe, Euroleague CEO Jordi Bertomeu was clear that this agreement would pave the way to develop a new business model for Euroleague.
‘This agreement with Tickets.com is one of the first examples of how our commercial direction will move forward,’ said Bertomeu. ‘The Euroleague Final Four is our showcase event that is now recognized on a global scale. Euroleague, and our host CSKA Moscow, felt the time was right to give basketball fans throughout Europe, and worldwide, equal access to tickets, including the very best seats. We very much appreciate the support we have received from CSKA’s CEO, Sergey Kuschenko, in standing behind this innovative approach.’
Tickets.com is one of the world’s leading suppliers of tailored ticketing, marketing and customer relationship management software. Tickets.com is headquartered in Costa Mesa, California, with European headquarters in Milton Keynes, United Kingdom. Their software has been used for the Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City. They handle on-line ticket sales for the majority of Major League Baseball clubs in the United States and are especially well-known for their breakthrough work with the San Francisco Giants.
‘We are very pleased to start a new relationship with Euroleague,’ said Tickets.com European Managing Director, Simon Crane. ‘We believe that professional basketball will show tremendous growth in Europe and we want to be a part of it. Not only does Euroleague manage the premier European competitions, but in our view, they have the right vision for the future. We look forward to expanding our relationship with Euroleague.’
Tickets purchased via www.f4tickets.com will be available in real time. When a customer goes to the web site, they will see what seats are available at that moment and will be able to complete the purchase immediately. Once the purchase is made, customers will have the option of having their tickets delivered or available for pick-up in Moscow, beginning on May 4.
‘I believe this approach to selling tickets is unprecedented in European sports,’ added Glickman. ‘There is no need for fans to wait until the last minute, when most tickets will already be sold. With this new system, basketball fans can purchase their tickets and organize their travel arrangements in advance. Starting next week, www.f4tickets.com will also provide links to Russian travel companies that will be available to make the necessary travel arrangements for fans coming to Moscow.’
Contacts
Marshall Glickman, Euroleague Consultant
001-781-772-1932
marshall.glickman@euroleague.net
Stephen Beadle, Tickets.com, Marketing Co-ordinator Europe
+44 (0) 232-404
sbeadle@tickets.com
Ferran Márquez, Euroleague Communications Director
0034-933-27-84-27
ferran.marquez@euroleague.net
David Watts, CSKA Moscow Director of Ticketing
007-095-250-77-93
watts@cskabasket.com