Formula 1‘s decision to refuse entry to fans with tickets bought through third parties has been labelled as “stifling competition” ahead of the F175 live event in 2025.
The season launch event for the 75th anniversary year of the F1 series will feature all 10 teams and 20 drivers presenting its new liveries for the 2025 season.
Set to take place on 18 February 2025, the event sold out within 45 minutes in the general sale window last Friday.
Afterwards, tickets were soon appearing on resale websites, with some being priced at over £1000 when the original price varied between £58 to £113.
F1 swiftly released a statement urging fans not to purchase resale tickets to the 2025 season launch event.
The statement also reminded fans that buying resale tickets ‘goes against the terms and conditions of sale’ and they will not be ‘valid for entry’.
The company encouraged fans to buy resale tickets through official websites ‘theo2.co.uk or via AXS Official Resale’ and confirmed that it had identified “fraudulent” listings.
Reselling platform hits back at F1 over third-party ticket ban
F1 fans on social media were left frustrated after the event sold out, many criticising F1 for the ticket-selling process as they queued for hours to no avail.
Fans also complained that as they were still queuing for tickets, listings were already appearing on re-sale sites for extortionate prices.
However, reselling platform Viagogo responded to F1’s plans to refuse third-party tickets and to accusations of fraud and the legality of ticket resale.
A Viagogo spokesperson told Motorsport.com: “Ticket resale is legal in the UK and Viagogo is fully compliant in the UK.
“By restricting resale, event organisers stifle competition and unfairly target fans who choose to buy on a secure, transparent, and highly regulated resale marketplace.
“Ticket fraud is extremely uncommon on our site.
“There’s no incentive for anyone to attempt to sell an invalid ticket on Viagogo, as they will not be paid unless the buyer gets into the event successfully.
“Sellers can also be charged penalty fees and banned from our platform for any policy violations.
“We operate an event organiser portal where all event organisers can contact us directly to investigate any listings.”
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