Chelsea move to digital tickets after banning 2,000 fans for touting
Chelsea have revealed further details of their switch to digital tickets next season, which the football club says it hopes will stamp out touting.
The Premier League outfit have cancelled 2,000 memberships linked to touting this season and believe that the new digital system will provide greater security.
It comes a year before the top flight makes it compulsory for all clubs to use digital tickets.
“This is an exciting transition for Chelsea FC that will yield multiple benefits and opportunities for our fans down the line,” said a club spokesperson.
“Most importantly it is another step on our journey to clamp down on the ticket touts. Switching to digital ticketing is a major step in ensuring a fairer, safer, more secure ticketing experience and will help to put real tickets in the hands of real fans.
“As a club we strive to provide the best service and best experience for our fans. Moving to digital tickets will be a crucial part of improving fan experience and giving them the peace of mind they deserve.”
The new digital ticketing system will be provided by Ticketmaster, which was announced as an official partner of Chelsea last week.
It comes after Chelsea fans made complaints that a secondary ticketing website, Vivid Seats, part owned by club chairman Todd Boehly was offering seats for sale at hugely inflated prices.
Chelsea say that the new digital tickets “will make purchasing and sharing tickets more secure and will aid the club in identifying ticket touts through improved visibility”.
They will also make it easier for fans to transfer their tickets to family and friends and eventually make entering Stamford Bridge a quicker experience.
Premier League clubs last year voted to make digital ticketing mandatory from the 2026-27 season, with newly promoted clubs still using paper tickets given two years to comply.