Earlier today, legions of Euro-fans took to the internet armed with their credit cards and crossed fingers, as the first batch of Eurovision tickets became available at 9:00 CET. Some lucky souls were successful, but many more were thwarted by technical issues and ticket touts. After 20 minutes of furious refreshing and waiting they had to give up, as the EBU declared that all tickets had been sold. We’ve rounded up a selection of tweets from frustrated fans.
On The Technical Issues With Oeticket.com
HELP! the ticket website isnt working #eurovision
— EwanESC (@EwanESC) December 15, 2014
All TV Shows sold out for now. But as every year the system was unable to cope with the demand for tickets. What a surprise? #Eurovision — Save The KeyChange (@KeyChangesFTW) December 15, 2014
Any Eurovision ticket provider be like pic.twitter.com/MYMzCNoobP
— Yassou Hana (@hanaleakey) December 15, 2014
@eurovision pls expn this msg when buying 1 standing: There are not enough seats directly next to eachother available in this price category — Byron (@byronmpr) December 15, 2014
@oeticket what’s happening with #Eurovision tickets? Have they sold out? Complete disaster on your website this morning!!!!
— Kris Berry (@kristopherberry) December 15, 2014
Eurovision tickets sold out in like 10 minutes and the site was full of bugs. Sad day. Might not be worth going for the next lot in Jan. — Lauren (@glasgirl) December 15, 2014
Scandalous way of handling the @eurovision ticket selling from #OeTicket! A shame! Impossible to book any ticket at 9 and over! #BadBuzz
— Sébastien Jehlen (@SJehlen) December 15, 2014
Eurovision’s ticketing system has completely fallen over. Please tell me why this isn’t done by lotto? — Andrew Fergusson (@andrewfergusson) December 15, 2014
@Eurovision I had got through checkout & supplied visa details but when going to confirm transaction the website crashed :/
— Queen Gallifreya (@QueenGallifreya) December 15, 2014
Oh dear @Eurovision Austria should have conferred with Denmark on ticketing. Site is a shambles, rules are stupid. Hope this isn’t a sign! — John Craig (@jcraig353) December 15, 2014
So annoyed at the @Eurovision ticket sales this year. No queuing system at all. It was total crap! #fuming ????
— Jezebel Horsell (@JezHorsell) December 15, 2014
if, like I was, you’re wondering why @orf‘s @eurovision tickets are so expensive, it’s because the ticketing site has managed to sell 5. — David James Lennon (@cowboystyle) December 15, 2014
Ticket sales for #Eurovision crash again. Same every single year. You would think this day in age the system could cope. Where’s the abacus?
— Dr Eurovision (@dreurovision) December 15, 2014
The “just sit back and relax” message on the Eurovision ticket waiting page is stressing me out to the max. — Stephen Lynch (@stephenplynch) December 15, 2014
This sounds like a cult. #eurovision pic.twitter.com/N79vluvSJH
— Steven Perkins (@stevenperkins) December 15, 2014
On Ticket Touts
Wonder if I can sell enough “I Was There – Eurovision Ticketing Meltdown 2015” shirts to be able to afford what the scalpers are charging. — Derek Nielsen (@OzhoopsDrek) December 15, 2014
I have to concede temporary defeat on Eurovision. There are a thousand tickets on scalper auction sites now, of course. Assholes.
— Joshua Meadows (@joshuameadows) December 15, 2014
Other sites now selling #eurovision tickets for like £1,584.29. Surely @Eurovision could stop resales? — Jon W. Chambers (@jonwillchambers) December 15, 2014
@Eurovision how about selling the next batch to fans only?
— Paul Cuffe (@paulpanyan) December 15, 2014
So only 25% of #Eurovision 2015 tickets went on sale today – hopefully they’ll not host the next wave on a website based in a garden shed. — Christopher (@thetroublewith) December 15, 2014
Will @Eurovision be taking legal action against @Viagogo? “ORF [may] take legal action against these providers [who sell tix 4 a profit].”
— Daniel Brye (@DanielBrye) December 15, 2014
EBU Response
Fans weren’t the only ones to take to twitter. Both Sietse Bakker (Eurovision’s Event Supervisor) and the official Eurovision account responded to a selection of disgruntled tweeters.
On the availability of tickets
@wiwibloggs With many more ppl who want tix than available tix, there are always disappointed people unfortunately. — Sietse Bakker (@SietseBakker) December 15, 2014
On the website’s language issues
@kernowchris @jonolasand There was a language option for English too
— Sietse Bakker (@SietseBakker) December 15, 2014
On ticket touts
@glitteryfox Such practice will stop when people stop buying for such ridiculous prices. Recommend not to buy! — Sietse Bakker (@SietseBakker) December 15, 2014
@jonwillchambers There will be more available in the next months, so everyone still has the chance to get them at official rates.
— Eurovision (@Eurovision) December 15, 2014
More Tickets
After the dust had settled, the EBU cheerily announced that the initial batch only accounted for 25% of all tickets, and that more would go on sale in January. But by then everyone was like:
Maybe they hired the same company that did the original Obamacare website.
I was lucky to get two tickets for the semifinals on wien-ticket.at, which is also an official partner, but only for domestic affairs. So there’s no shipping.
But I don’t understand why, when oeticket.at, stadthalle.at and wien-ticket.at use the same booking system, the one company still has available tickets when the other had none?!
I had got through checkout & supplied visa details but when going to confirm transaction the website crashed :/ and on retrial the site told me the special code already was used… OK fill in the contact form and try to stay calm ….
Those tickets are like golden or platinum diamonds. So no wonder the ticket sales and how quickly 100,000 tickets for 9 shows have caused a lot of frustration.
I thought about getting tickets myself but I would be burning a hole out of my parents’ pockets and I don’t like doing that. Nevertheless, I hope to go to Eurovision 2016, wherever it is (I hope Ukraine, Bosnia Herzegovina, Slovakia and Bulgaria return as well and MAYBE Kosovo debuts.).
Sietse Bakker sounds like an asshole.
And why should we believe in January everything’s fine?
Yesterday morning was a complete waste of precious lifetime, since lifetime is limited y’all
May the odds be ever in your favor?
Oooo. Interesting tip Mikael! I will try my iPhone in Jamuary!
It was very stressful this morning… Website on the computer didnt work.. but on the Phone i got straight through. Managed to get me seats for the final and standing tickets for semi 1…. 😀
Wish they had told us about the 25% things before today. I was freaking out after FAILING to get a ticket