World Cup Qualifying Tickets - BMO and BC Place

[narduch]

2 minutes ago, admin said:

Our tickets, for the supporters section have always been distributed directly from us.  We have sold out many times but that was thousands of tickets and people could most of the time find tickets elsewhere in the stadium. 

It will be different this time, but we don't know how yet.  I do know I will no longer have access to PDF tickets.  

It's not immediately obvious how we will be able to map out sales onto a rigid seating map dictated by covid regulations.  If you fix the sales number, say 4 tickets, and we had PDF tickets it would not be bad.  I could figure that out.  But I have no idea what this system is like they want us to use.  If it takes even a few minutes to do one ticket it gets impossible fast. 

It may come down to a code, which I fear will be a disaster for the most important games in decades. 

 

 

The PDF issue probably has to do with Ticketmaster. They don't do them anymore now. You need to download their app.

[Admin]

1 minute ago, narduch said:

The PDF issue probably has to do with Ticketmaster. They don't do them anymore now. You need to download their app.

Yeah, it's all TM, this is not coming from Canada Soccer.

You need a phone and app to get into the stadium now.   

I can't imagine what it means for the future.  Just think what they can/might do with all that data.  Who buys the most beer?  What if you don't drink... maybe you don't get ticket offers in the future from events if TM can sell who are the most valuable customers to organizations using venues.   Can security get alerted to people as the move through the stadium?  I doubt any of it is happening now, or all of it is... I dunno.  Just rambling.

 

 

[narduch]

3 minutes ago, admin said:

Yeah, it's all TM, this is not coming from Canada Soccer.

You need a phone and app to get into the stadium now.  

That's how TFC tickets are now.

It's super annoying 

[JohnnyFranchise]

20 hours ago, narduch said:

The PDF issue probably has to do with Ticketmaster. They don't do them anymore now. You need to download their app

 

20 hours ago, admin said:

You need a phone and app to get into the stadium now. 

Yah, that's a f*cking joke, eh. I'm guessing for guys just going with a few buddies you can just do will call, but for you trying to organize thousands of tix that's a nightmare.

[Free kick]

Yes.  Its very disconcerting where all this can end up.   Just think of it,  its not just the ticket distribution services that has access to this kind of data from you but also the providers from other apps that you have installed and you need to installed.  Such as from your employers in order to get to work etc etc.  so, theoretically,  TM might know (not just the ticket info) but where you work.  And vise versa.  

i am not a conspiracy theory kind of guy but we really dont know in which hands all this data could eventaully fall under.  Today it might be legitamate organizations and entities,  tomorrow it might filter to crooks and frausters who will find a way to use it in order scam you.  
 

Things like tickets entertaininment and sports events i would be more than happy to use only paper.  How is it really anymore convenient to go digital with this stuff.  

Edited August 1, 2021 by Free kick

[nfitz]

On 7/31/2021 at 5:12 PM, admin said:

Nov games will likely be at BC Place.  Almost zero chance we don't play Mexico there.  Would rather play them on a good grass field but, CFL kills that prospect.   The original dates were Nov 12th and 16th.  Looks like they were changed to 10th and 14th, which I suspect dodges the Lions on the 12th.  So I would make a bet BC Place for CR and Mexico.

Also dodges the only scheduled November Argo game at BMO Field - on November 12 against Hamilton.

With cases already surging in Ontario (though not as bad as BC), I'd expect they are keeping all options open.

 

Edited August 3, 2021 by nfitz

[Admin]

6 hours ago, nfitz said:

Also dodges the only scheduled November Argo game at BMO Field - on November 12 against Hamilton.

With cases already surging in Ontario (though not as bad as BC), I'd expect they are keeping all options open.

 

They can't simply keep options open though, they need a hard deadline on organizing the game.  You need to staff it ect...

This is already past a normal organizational date by a couple of weeks. 

 

[nfitz]

4 hours ago, admin said:

They can't simply keep options open though, they need a hard deadline on organizing the game.  You need to staff it ect...

This is already past a normal organizational date by a couple of weeks. 

True ... I'd assume the other options would be in closed stadiums. BMO or bus!

[Admin]

Well now.....

If you are thinking about booking flights, do NOT do it based on anything I have said. 

Game locations are NOT DECIDED and we do not even know if the first games will be held in Canada. That decision by the Feds has been delayed another week.

The only thing we do know is the first two games would be in Toronto, if they happen. But it is absolutely a possibility that will not happen at this point. 

[narduch]

6 minutes ago, admin said:

Well now.....

If you are thinking about booking flights, do NOT do it based on anything I have said. 

Game locations are NOT DECIDED and we will not even know if the first games will be held in Canada. That decision by the Feds has been delayed another week.

The only thing we do know is the first two games would be in Toronto, if they happen. But it is absolutely a possibility that will not happen at this point. 

What happened to Forge has really got me feeling pessimistic about this.

[Admin]

Yeah, I am sorry I do not have more decisive news.

The meeting we had today was anything but with respect to definitive cities or dates.

It is out of Canada Soccer's hands. They are at the mercy of the federal regulators.

[Califax]

Me after booking flights 

[narduch]

1 minute ago, Califax said:

Me after booking flights 

Maybe you can change them to Chicago 

[Califax]

I can get a credit I’m sure 

[JamboAl]

16 minutes ago, Califax said:

I can get a credit I’m sure 

I bought plane tickets as well but think they are refundable.  But like Jamie said, don’t do anything yet…there is still some time to confirm venues but it’s not in the control of Canada Soccer.

[Canadamnt]

Why did the government hold Forge back from playing the game in Canada? If all other professional sports are receiving permission from the government, then why would Canada soccer not be able to receive permission? 

[narduch]

2 minutes ago, Canadamnt said:

Why did the government hold Forge back from playing the game in Canada? If all other professional sports are receiving permission from the government, then why would Canada soccer not be able to receive permission? 

My guess is that the North American leagues have a higher percentage of vaccinated players and they have a better isolation strategy for when they arrive (ie. they basically stay in their hotels, go the match, then back to hotel).

For MLS teams will fly in and out in a fairly short time period. Often flying in the same day as a match.

Edited August 4, 2021 by narduch

[JamboAl]

13 minutes ago, Canadamnt said:

Why did the government hold Forge back from playing the game in Canada? If all other professional sports are receiving permission from the government, then why would Canada soccer not be able to receive permission? 

Without knowing the answer, some considerations to think about (from the government’s and local/provincial public health perspectives):

- players and staff vaccinations and which vaccines; Chinese or Russian ones don’t count currently

- players coming from a bunch of different countries where they play professionally

- there maybe an election called soon…what is the incentive to be more flexible on entry into Canada when polls say that the public is, in general, in favour of more restrictions than less

I’m sure there’s more that I haven’t thought of and I haven’t even talked about stadium capacity, which is more provincial/local than federal.

[Admin]

2 hours ago, Canadamnt said:

Why did the government hold Forge back from playing the game in Canada? If all other professional sports are receiving permission from the government, then why would Canada soccer not be able to receive permission? 

The permission comes at a price.  The big leagues have expensive protocols in place that CanPL/Forge just can't afford. 

 

[Ryan Page]

On 7/31/2021 at 7:49 PM, admin said:

Yeah, it's all TM, this is not coming from Canada Soccer.

You need a phone and app to get into the stadium now.   

I can't imagine what it means for the future.  Just think what they can/might do with all that data.  Who buys the most beer?  What if you don't drink... maybe you don't get ticket offers in the future from events if TM can sell who are the most valuable customers to organizations using venues.   Can security get alerted to people as the move through the stadium?  I doubt any of it is happening now, or all of it is... I dunno.  Just rambling.

 

 

As someone who manages this stuff for a living I can comment here.

 

Stadium operators typically don't hold on to financial data (i.e. credit cards, etc) to absolve themselves of compliance and regulatory rules.  So the correlation of spending on beer and ticket owner is not happening at the operator level.  Perhaps Mastercard/VISA/etc are selling that data to Ticketmaster but I find it a massive stretch to think prioritization is given to those who buy beer/food.  F&B is a very small drop in the bucket of sports revenue. 

Can security get alerted to people moving through the stadium?  Absolutely can and does happen already if you're carrying a cell phone that's identified to you.  If you've ever tied your device to any personal data that is held by the stadium operator, then how and where you roam in the building (if the operator owns and manages these services) can definitely be done.  Both live and historical.  This type of technology has been around and used for 10+ years. 

The main driver behind digital ticketing is anti-scamming because the digital barcodes are becoming animated and not something you can replicate on paper.  It will be 100% impossible to scam someone, which is a far more common scenario (every event basically) than people realize.  It also keeps the revenue in the control of the event.  Keeping things digital will funnel 2nd hand sales through either Ticketmaster or the event operator's resale platform (they'll get fees and stuff here) and less money goes through scalping and offline resales.    Furthermore helps maintain the identity of who has what ticket if done through those resale platforms.

Edited August 5, 2021 by Ryan Page

[BearcatSA]

25 minutes ago, Ryan Page said:

As someone who manages this stuff for a living I can comment here.

 

Stadium operators typically don't hold on to financial data (i.e. credit cards, etc) to absolve themselves of compliance and regulatory rules.  So the correlation of spending on beer and ticket owner is not happening at the operator level.  Perhaps Mastercard/VISA/etc are selling that data to Ticketmaster but I find it a massive stretch to think prioritization is given to those who buy beer/food.  F&B is a very small drop in the bucket of sports revenue. 

Can security get alerted to people moving through the stadium?  Absolutely can and does happen already if you're carrying a cell phone that's identified to you.  If you've ever tied your device to any personal data that is held by the stadium operator, then how and where you roam in the building (if the operator owns and manages these services) can definitely be done.  Both live and historical.  This type of technology has been around and used for 10+ years. 

The main driver behind digital ticketing is anti-scamming because the digital barcodes are becoming animated and not something you can replicate on paper.  It will be 100% impossible to scam someone, which is a far more common scenario (every event basically) than people realize.  It also keeps the revenue in the control of the event.  Keeping things digital will funnel 2nd hand sales through either Ticketmaster or the event operator's resale platform (they'll get fees and stuff here) and less money goes through scalping and offline resales.    Furthermore helps maintain the identity of who has what ticket if done through those resale platforms.

Thanks for the insight 🙂

[Admin]

41 minutes ago, Ryan Page said:

As someone who manages this stuff for a living I can comment here.

 

Stadium operators typically don't hold on to financial data (i.e. credit cards, etc) to absolve themselves of compliance and regulatory rules.  So the correlation of spending on beer and ticket owner is not happening at the operator level.  Perhaps Mastercard/VISA/etc are selling that data to Ticketmaster but I find it a massive stretch to think prioritization is given to those who buy beer/food.  F&B is a very small drop in the bucket of sports revenue. 

Can security get alerted to people moving through the stadium?  Absolutely can and does happen already if you're carrying a cell phone that's identified to you.  If you've ever tied your device to any personal data that is held by the stadium operator, then how and where you roam in the building (if the operator owns and manages these services) can definitely be done.  Both live and historical.  This type of technology has been around and used for 10+ years. 

The main driver behind digital ticketing is anti-scamming because the digital barcodes are becoming animated and not something you can replicate on paper.  It will be 100% impossible to scam someone, which is a far more common scenario (every event basically) than people realize.  It also keeps the revenue in the control of the event.  Keeping things digital will funnel 2nd hand sales through either Ticketmaster or the event operator's resale platform (they'll get fees and stuff here) and less money goes through scalping and offline resales.    Furthermore helps maintain the identity of who has what ticket if done through those resale platforms.

I totally agree the main driver is ticketing. 

Just putting the paranoid hat on mostly for fun, and I think in the long genuine concern.  I could lock my phone down totally, but if I have that app active in a venue, then who knows what I am giving up or how that app will change in the future.  The TOS may be fine today... but down the road, who knows. 

 

[lenny]

On 7/31/2021 at 4:49 PM, admin said:

You need a phone and app to get into the stadium now.   

So, people without phones, like myself, can no longer go to sports events?  What?

 

 

 

[Admin]

1 hour ago, lenny said:

 

I don't think will be necessarily true.  You might be able to do something at will call.  

After all people's phones run out of power, break ect...

[Norton]

On 8/3/2021 at 11:17 PM, admin said:

Yeah, I am sorry I do not have more decisive news.

The meeting we had today was anything but with respect to definitive cities or dates.

It is out of Canada Soccer's hands. They are at the mercy of the federal regulators.

The best way for the CSA to get some urgency on a decision for this is probably for Voyageurs to tweet directly at the cabinet ministers involved --- Health and Immigration ministers on this one.  It seems silly but no minister wants to have even somewhat critical tweets filling up their feeds (particularly with an election seemingly on the horizon).  If it is an issue that they haven't been fully engaged with yet (maybe the request is still working its way through the bureaucracy and hasn't landed with the ultimate decision-makers yet), a burst of social media posts has a way of getting focus on it.  Federal worker here, and I've seen it happen a lot in recent years. Gotta think that a decision has to come this week. Any later and it starts getting pretty difficult to stage the game.