Olympic Ticket Favoritism Upsets British Fans

Nearly 55% of people who applied were left empty handed.

The Telegraph is reporting that up to a million people were not awarded a single ticket in the 2012 London Olympic ticket lottery. This is upsetting the locals, because apparently organizers of the Olympics have awarded 13,000 seats to politicians such as members of Parliament and their guests.

Apparently 55% of people who signed up for the lottery were left empty handed. Approximately 1.8 million people filled out 20 million applications for 6.6 million tickets.

The price tag on the number of tickets held back? Over £1 million.

These seats must be paid for, but, in some cases, at the expense of taxpayers.One London borough will pay £4,000 for its mayor to attend both the opening and closing ceremonies.

A rising number of people are speaking out, saying that politicians should give back their tickets. Matthew Sinclair, of the TaxPayers’ Alliance said that the officials should “save money and hand tickets back to increase the chances for all”.

Fans that missed out of the original lottery system can still bid in the second-round ballot, but that ballot is reserved either for higher-priced venues or for fringe events.

For More: Telegraph