Sports fans who want to use a credit or debit card to buy tickets for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games will be restricted to using a Visa card, due to an exclusive deal between the Olympic organisers and the credit card payment system.
Payment for the 10 million tickets expected to be sold from 2011 through the Olympic website and other authorised sellers have been restricted to those that run through the Visa payment system.
On the official London 2012 ticket site, it says: "In recognition of Visa's support of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games, London 2012 is proud to accept only Visa payment cards (debit, credit and prepaid), along with cash and cheques. Sponsor support is crucial to the staging of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games and the operation of organisations throughout the Olympic Movement.
"London 2012 will also welcome cash and cheques. However, to enjoy the benefit of the quickest and easiest means of payment, see below on how to apply for a Visa card."
Astonishingly the site then goes on to tell customers how to apply for a Visa card, saying "the easiest way to obtain a Visa card is to contact your existing bank which will be able to help you to select and apply for a Visa card that most suits your needs. Alternatively anyone can purchase a Visa prepaid card from a Visa card issuer which can be used immediately. Please visit the Visa website for details."
There are 91 million Visa cardholders in the UK compared to 40 million Mastercard and 4 million Amex cardholders, meaning that some potential buyers will struggle to obtain tickets. The deal also means they will not be able to withdraw cash from ATMs or make purchases at any Olympic sites unless they have cash: the ATMs and payment terminals are also restricted to Visa cards.
Paul Woodmansey, a press officer for London 2012, said the exclusive arrangement with Visa was not "unusual in any way or form. As a sponsor, they gain exclusivity in their sector," he said. "This has been the situation since [the Olympics in] Seoul in 1988."
According to Which?, the restrictions only apply to UK cardholders: non-UK cardholders will still be able to use other cards to buy tickets.
Peter Vicary-Smith, chief executive of Which?, said: "We think it's outrageous that some UK sports fans should be discriminated against in this way. We want the London 2012 Committee to take steps to ensure there's a level playing field and that UK consumers have equal access to the Games, whether or not they are Visa cardholders. If it doesn't, we'll call on the government to step in."
No Visa, No entry
No Visa, No entry
“If you trust in yourself, and believe in your dreams, and follow your star. . . you'll still get beaten by people who spent their time working hard and learning things and weren't so lazy.”
Re: No Visa, No entry
Brilliant. They (the Olympics organizers) are forcing the use of the cash management organization that is giving them the best deal, overall. For people with the wherewithall to purchase tickets to the Olympics (no homeless folks, I assure you), I suspect this would be a minor inconvenience.
Find a bank that offers a no-fee Visa, get the card, use it, then cancel your card after the Olympics. Not much of a challenge at all.
But compare this slight inconvenience with serious economic abuse the Olympic spectators are required to endure at the hands of the various vendors. Food, refreshments, and "logo" merchandise will sell for at least two or three times what comparable food, drink, and merchandise would sell for anywhere else - and if you complain you are considered a boor.
Parking will be ludicrously expensive, hotels will jack up their rates to unprecedented levels, customary discounts on rental cars and non-standard transportation will be non-existent.
To be short and crude about it, if you go to the Olympics, every commercial entity with which you do business from the first planning phone call until you unpack you bags at the end of your trip will fuck your figurative brains out. And you will be happier for the experience, won't you?
So against this backdrop, having to open a new credit card account is small change, so to speak. At least in my opinion.
Find a bank that offers a no-fee Visa, get the card, use it, then cancel your card after the Olympics. Not much of a challenge at all.
But compare this slight inconvenience with serious economic abuse the Olympic spectators are required to endure at the hands of the various vendors. Food, refreshments, and "logo" merchandise will sell for at least two or three times what comparable food, drink, and merchandise would sell for anywhere else - and if you complain you are considered a boor.
Parking will be ludicrously expensive, hotels will jack up their rates to unprecedented levels, customary discounts on rental cars and non-standard transportation will be non-existent.
To be short and crude about it, if you go to the Olympics, every commercial entity with which you do business from the first planning phone call until you unpack you bags at the end of your trip will fuck your figurative brains out. And you will be happier for the experience, won't you?
So against this backdrop, having to open a new credit card account is small change, so to speak. At least in my opinion.
Re: No Visa, No entry
This is indeed one of those "problems of the rich".
"Hang on while I log in to the James Webb telescope to search the known universe for who the fuck asked you." -- James Fell
Re: No Visa, No entry
I don't see it as a problem, more as an unnecessary and rather stupid detraction from the desire, (not that I have any,) to get tickets.
“If you trust in yourself, and believe in your dreams, and follow your star. . . you'll still get beaten by people who spent their time working hard and learning things and weren't so lazy.”
Re: No Visa, No entry
Just as a bye the bye here, what cards do people have?
I have a Mastercard and a Visa card, and an EFTPOS card.
I have a Mastercard and a Visa card, and an EFTPOS card.
“If you trust in yourself, and believe in your dreams, and follow your star. . . you'll still get beaten by people who spent their time working hard and learning things and weren't so lazy.”
Re: No Visa, No entry
I have both Mastercard & Visa debit cards.
Credit cards are paid off and gone!
Credit cards are paid off and gone!
Why is it that when Miley Cyrus gets naked and licks a hammer it's 'art' and 'edgy' but when I do it I'm 'drunk' and 'banned from the hardware store'?
Re: No Visa, No entry
VISA debit x2 + a VISA credit card that is paid in full every month.
VISA; it's everyplace you want to be.
VISA; it's everyplace you want to be.
For me, it is far better to grasp the Universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring.
~ Carl Sagan
~ Carl Sagan
Re: No Visa, No entry
none 
Your collective inability to acknowledge this obvious truth makes you all look like fools.
yrs,
rubato
Re: No Visa, No entry
Well then, you don't really exist. 
For me, it is far better to grasp the Universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring.
~ Carl Sagan
~ Carl Sagan
Re: No Visa, No entry
3 Visa cards. One mine, one hers, one ours.
No debit cards.
1 gas card.
But cash is accepted everywhere. I like cash.
yrs,
rubato
No debit cards.
1 gas card.
But cash is accepted everywhere. I like cash.
yrs,
rubato
Re: No Visa, No entry
Damned if I know. My one CC is a Visa...my debit/ATM card I don't know.Gob wrote:Just as a bye the bye here, what cards do people have?
I have a Mastercard and a Visa card, and an EFTPOS card.
Treat Gaza like Carthage.
Re: No Visa, No entry
I fly under the radar, my credit is so shot that I am on a cash only basis.bigskygal wrote:Well then, you don't really exist.
Your collective inability to acknowledge this obvious truth makes you all look like fools.
yrs,
rubato
Re: No Visa, No entry
Mean-spirited Olympics chiefs have already banned frisbees, flags and oversized hats in a list of oppressive rules to keep ticketholders under control.
But now it has emerged sports fans will also be hauled out of official London 2012 venues for daring to wear a Pepsi T-shirt - simply because it is not an accredited sponsor.
In the latest example of the increasing dominance of commercial sponsors in international sport, the draconian law was revealed by Olympic supremo Sebastian Coe today as he defended claims of a heavy-handed approach to protecting endorsers' rights.
Fizzy-drinks fans, however, can still get past the tightly guarded turnstiles as long as they only wear T-shirts bearing the slogan of bitter rivals Coca-Cola - an 'Official Olympics Partner'.
There was some good news for logo lovers, though, as Nike trainers would 'probably' be allowed through security despite not making the list of accredited brands, he told BBC's Today Programme.
Presenter Evan Davis challenged the former gold-winning athlete on whether he would be allowed to turn up to an event in a Pepsi T-shirt.
Lord Coe told him: 'No, you probably wouldn’t be walking in with a Pepsi T-shirt because Coca-Cola are our sponsors and they have put millions of pounds into this project but also millions of pounds into grassroots sport. It is important to protect those sponsors.'
Asked whether he could wear Nike trainers, Lord Coe said: 'I think you probably could...'
WHAT ELSE IS BANNED FROM THE GAMES?
Balls, rackets, frisbees
Large flags and banners
Clothing with political statements or commercial signage
Oversized hats
Large golf-style umbrellas
Long-lens cameras and tripods
Excessive amounts of food
Noisemakers
Liquids greater than 100ml
“If you trust in yourself, and believe in your dreams, and follow your star. . . you'll still get beaten by people who spent their time working hard and learning things and weren't so lazy.”
Re: No Visa, No entry
Okay, the oversized hats I can understand...
At the prices they're charging for the tickets, who the hell wants some clod sitting in front of them with a three foot tall hat....
And the liquids thing I guess is for the same reason as the rule on planes; to prevent people from bringing in explosives...
But most of the rest of that list just looks like party pooper control freak stuff....
I guess the Olympics organizers won't be happy unless the crowds behave as low key and bored as the lot watching a cricket match....
At the prices they're charging for the tickets, who the hell wants some clod sitting in front of them with a three foot tall hat....
And the liquids thing I guess is for the same reason as the rule on planes; to prevent people from bringing in explosives...
But most of the rest of that list just looks like party pooper control freak stuff....
I guess the Olympics organizers won't be happy unless the crowds behave as low key and bored as the lot watching a cricket match....
Last edited by Lord Jim on Sat Jul 21, 2012 3:10 am, edited 1 time in total.
Re: No Visa, No entry
“If you trust in yourself, and believe in your dreams, and follow your star. . . you'll still get beaten by people who spent their time working hard and learning things and weren't so lazy.”
Re: No Visa, No entry
That's so you have to BUY the overpriced Coke, if you get thirsty.Liquids greater than 100ml
Re: No Visa, No entry
If they ban the shouting of:
USA! USA! USA!
Then I say we declare war on the Limeys, and give their Defence Forces something to really worry about....
USA! USA! USA!
Then I say we declare war on the Limeys, and give their Defence Forces something to really worry about....
Re: No Visa, No entry
Be careful, Jim.
They have Marmite (or is it Vegimite?)
They have Marmite (or is it Vegimite?)
Your collective inability to acknowledge this obvious truth makes you all look like fools.
yrs,
rubato