Next week tickets for the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 will go on sale. Ewan Spence has a few thoughts about where to buy tickets, how to obtain fan packages, and why you should avoid the unofficial resellers.

The Basics

Tickets will go on sale on Thursday 12th December – just in time for Christmas. Links to buying tickets can be found via the official Eurovision.tv website. Tickets will be released in three waves, so there will be further opportunities in 2020 to buy tickets, presumably once the camera positions are locked in and the exact space needed for equipment is known.

As well as the live broadcasts, tickets are also available for the second dress rehearsal (the Jury Show) which awards fifty percent of the total points available, and the third dress rehearsal (the family show) which is the last run through before the broadcast.

Prices do vary, again check the website for details. Note there are discounts on the Semi Final tickets if you buy in this first wave. Accessible tickets are also available with prices matching the tickets available for the second tier. Each accessible ticket allows a second ticket to be purchased for a companion. These must be arranged directly, and again details are on Eurovision.tv.

OGAE Fan Packages

A number of Fan Packages of tickets are being made available to OGAE clubs. There will be 2286 packages in total (each has six tickets in total, for the Jury Shows and Live Shows of the two Semi Finals and theGrand Final), with allocations to each club on a pro-rata basis. Each club will have a different way of distributing their allocation, so you should check with your club’s committee on how to proceed.

Secondary Market Tickets

We’ve previously looked at the issue of ticketing around the Eurovision Song Contest. Although some of the more radical ideas have not been implemented (a full public ballot, or awarding queue skipping power-ups to engaged fans), Eurovision tickets will be paired up with names after purchase to reduce the potential for ticket touts.

That said, once tickets go on sale a tidal wave of secondary ticketing markets will offer pricing for Eurovision ticket that will be in excess of the listed ticket price. The majority of these are expected to be ‘futures’, in other words these unofficial agencies could sell you a ticket at a huge mark-up before they go and try to find a ticket for you. If they can obtain a ticket for less than the exorbitant price you paid, they are in profit and the transaction goes ahead. If they can’t, your order may be cancelled.

ESC Insight would strongly advise you to only buy your ticket via the official website to avoid disappointment.

There is one change this year to secondary tickets. TicketSwap is partnered with PayLogic (which is the official ticketing partner of the Song Contest, making TicketSwap the official re-selling partner), and will allow those who have legitimately purchased a ticket that can no longer be used to re-sell it to other fans.

If you are looking to buy a ticket from another fan, we would strongly advise you use TicketSwap, which limits the ‘mark-up’ someone can add to the ticket to twenty percent of the original sale price.

Rotterdam is also expected to have open-air viewings of the Eurovision Song Contest throughout the city, so if you are unsuccessful in obtaining tickets there will be some great locations with atmosphere to watch the Song Contest.