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Barcelona City Council has signed an official declaration affirming its commitment to the fight against illegal ticket resale. The move was supported by all political groups across the Council, recognising the harm that illegal resale does to the creative industries and members of the public. Barcelona is believed to be the first city in the world to make a commitment of this kind.

Each year, Barcelona hosts more than a thousand concerts and live events at iconic venues including Palau Sant Jordi, Parc del Fòrum, Estadi Olímpic, Gran Teatre del Liceu, L’Auditori and Palau de la Música Catalana. With an estimated 3 million fans attending these events annually, Barcelona City Council has reaffirmed its commitment to fair and safe ticket resale to protect fans and culture.

Barcelona City Council paid special attention to ‘speculative ticketing’ in its declaration, where traders list tickets for resale before they have been purchased on the primary market. This leaves fans ‘burned’ when they receive a different ticket than expected, or don’t receive a ticket at all.

The declaration also states the city’s support for FEAT as a non-profit organisation formed to improve ticket resale across Europe, representing the interests of live event organisers, music promoters, venues, sports clubs and fans. In 2024 FEAT welcomed new local members, the legendary football club FC Barcelona and Barcelona de Serveis Municipals (B:SM) who operate venues across the city. FEAT declared Barcelona as its “home city” at the start of 2024, and held its annual general meeting there in October.

In Europe, the ticket resale market is worth up to €3 bn annually, growing by about 10% a year. The market is driven by professional traders who use bots or other fraudulent methods to bulk-buy tickets, dramatically increase ticket prices, and often fail to list correct ticket information. Other anti-consumer practices include speculative ticketing, where traders advertise the sale of tickets not yet purchased, or offering tickets for concerts that have not yet gone on sale.

FEAT founding director & CEO of Doctor Music, Neo Sala, said “This declaration cements Barcelona as a city that supports and nurtures live entertainment, concerts and festivals. I am delighted that the Council agrees with FEAT’s aims and objectives, and we firmly welcome their support in the fight against illegal ticket resale”.

Leading Barcelona venues Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys and Palau Sant Jordi have become the first venues to join FEAT, the organisation working to encourage face-value ticket resale across Europe.

FEAT has worked on several EU-wide campaigns to develop better laws to protect fans and promoters against predatory ticket resellers, and is the coordinating member of the Make Tickets Fair! campaign.

Estadi Olímpic is one of the biggest stadiums in Spain at up to 55,000 capacity, and regularly hosts huge concerts with the last few years seeing Bruce Springsteen; Coldplay; Rammstein; Ed Sheeran; Harry Styles; Bruno Mars and the Red Hot Chili Peppers pass through its doors. It has also been used by FC Barcelona for training and fixtures in the 2023/24 season whilst their home ground undergoes renovation.

Palau Sant Jordi is an iconic Barcelona venue which boasts the title of the largest indoor arena by capacity in Spain at approx 18,500 capacity. It also has a 4,500 capacity club at the back of the building. Between the two venues, Palau Sant Jordi provides a space for medium and large scale concerts for a wide range of genres and artists. In 2023/2024 alone, the venue will have hosted both national and international artists on their big tours.

Palau Sant Jordi and Estadi Olímpic are the first major venues in Europe to join FEAT. In 2023, they closed a record year with 2.1 million spectators and more than 160 programmed events, consolidating their leading role in positioning Barcelona as a city of major events. Both venues are owned by Barcelona de Serveis Municipals (BSM), the company responsible for the management of these and other emblematic spaces in Barcelona.

Speaking about the news, Anella Olímpica Director Carmen Lanuza said “Ticket resale directly affects venues such as the Palau Sant Jordi and the Olympic Stadium. Joining this initiative is part of our commitment to generate unique and safe experiences for all those who visit us. It is essential to join efforts to make it possible to end this practice.”

Neo Sala, CEO of Doctor Music and Founding Director of FEAT, said “I am extremely excited to welcome BSM, and the venues that they represent, to FEAT. Estadi Olímpic and Palau Sant Jordi are of huge cultural significance in the city bringing the world’s greatest artists to Barcelona. It is great news that they believe in FEAT’s mission of face-value ticket resale and we look forward to working with them to protect fans from predatory resellers”.

Tag: Barcelona

City of Barcelona Signs Declaration Against Illegal Ticket Resale

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