More than 1.2 million tickets for football’s 2024 European Championship in Germany go on sale next month, with seats priced from 30 euros ($32) at group-stage games up to 1,000 euros ($1,072) for the final, UEFA said.
The most expensive seats of all the 2.7 million tickets for the 51 games will be in a new high-end “Prime Seats” category that more than doubles the highest prices from Euro 2020.
The prime halfway line spots will go on sale in December at 400 euros ($429) for group-stage games and 2,000 euros ($2,146) for the final at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin on July 14, UEFA said.
Football tournaments in Germany are traditionally high-revenue events, and the cheapest hospitality package prices next year are about 40 per cent more expensive than at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
UEFA said in April it expects total revenue of at least 2.4 billion euros ($2.6 billion) from Euro 2024 as it seeks to rebuild its cash reserves above 500 million euros ($536 million) since they dipped during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Tickets sold from October 3-26 are for games on specific dates before the full schedule is known for the month-long tournament in 10 German cities. This first sales phase is “the best chance, especially for local fans,” said UEFA, which runs sales through its website.
A second phase, also involving fans of specific teams, starts two days after the December 2 tournament draw in Hamburg, when 21 of the eventual 24-nation lineup will be known. The last three teams qualified in March through playoffs, and UEFA will retain tickets for those fans.
UEFA said more than 80 per cent of the 2.7 million tickets available for the 51 games will go to fans of the 24 teams and the general public.
A total of 380,000 seats will be sold in the lowest-price category in the stadium ends behind the goals with 270,000 priced at 30 euros ($32) for group-stage games, UEFA said.
The 30 euros ($32) bracket was available for Euro 2020 in only three host venues — Baku, Azerbaijan; Budapest, Hungary; Bucharest, Romania — of the 11 countries which staged that tournament in 2021 during the pandemic. They cost 50 euros ($53) elsewhere.
UEFA also has retained the “category 1” class which offered the most expensive seats at Euro 2020 — 185 euros ($198) before the quarterfinals at most cities and 945 euros ($1,015) for the final at Wembley Stadium in London. At the 2024 final, the category 1 price is 1,000 euros ($1,072).
UEFA said it also makes 7 per cent of the tournament capacity available to broadcasters and sponsors, 4 per cent to the hospitality program and 4 per cent to German sports and public authorities. UEFA retains 3 per cent for itself, member federations and its guests.
The hospitality program is priced higher than at the 2022 World Cup, where packages in Qatar started at $950.
In Germany, the prices start at 1,250 euros ($1,340) in a program UEFA has outsourced to a company created by the agencies Sportfive and Dentsu. At Euro 2020, hospitality prices started at 780 euros ($837).
All ticket holders in Germany get free public transport from 6 a.m. on gameday until 6 p.m. the next day in the host city and region. Rail operator Deutsche Bahn is a tournament sponsor.
Games are being played in Berlin, Cologne, Dortmund, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Gelsenkirchen, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich and Stuttgart.
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