Ticket touting crackdown: Government plans to BAN reselling above face value for big sporting events amid concerns fans are being ripped off

Reselling tickets for live events for profit is reportedly set to be banned by the Government in a move that will have an impact on sports fans.

Reports in the Guardian and Financial Times revealed ministers are expected to announce the plan to tackle touts and resale sites which offer tickets at several times' their face value - and instead set the limit at face value, although fees could still be charged on top of that price.

The Labour manifesto promised stronger protections to stop consumers being scammed or priced out of events by touts, who frequently use bots to buy tickets in bulk the moment they go on sale, which they can then sell on for huge mark-ups on secondary ticketing websites.

The Government declined to comment on the reports.

The issue of ticket touting has become a major issue at Premier League clubs over recent years.

It is already a criminal offence in the UK to tout tickets for football matches, yet it still appears to happen with many websites operating by being based outside of the country.

The government is set to make it illegal to resell tickets to live sporting events for a profit

Ticket touting has become a big problem at several Premier League clubs, including Liverpool

Several clubs, most notably Chelsea and Liverpool have highlighted the issue. In fact, at Stamford Bridge, the topic has significantly impacted the relationship between parts of the fanbase and the club's hierarchy.

This was heightened when it was revealed that Chelsea chairman Todd Boehly was a director of Vivid Seats - a company that is on the Premier League's 'unauthorised ticket sellers' list.

Speaking earlier this year, Mark Meehan, chair of the Chelsea Supporters Trust, highlighted the stark issue.

'I get the mismatch between supply and demand,' he told the Chelsea FanCast. 'It has never been harder to get a Chelsea ticket. It's clear something isn't working.

'There's the issue of touting and it is a Premier League wide issue, but it is really a serious issue at Chelsea. Tout gangs infiltrated the ticket exchange last season.

'I'd say up to 2,000 tickets per game at Chelsea are touted. If you make a dent in that then that frees up tickets for young members.'

Statistics reported by the BBC revealed Chelsea received 350,000 attempted bot purchases for their opening game of the season, while they cancelled 2,000 ticket purchases for a Champions League four-match bundle due to a violation of rules.

'We need supporters in the stadium to email the club, rather than complain on social media, if they see a touted fan in the stadium with the exact seat number to stop it,' Meehan added. 'We need to work with the club on this.

It is similarly an issue at Chelsea, whose chairman Todd Boehly is a director of Vivid Seats - a company that is on the Premier League's 'unauthorised ticket sellers' list

'Ticketing is the single biggest issue impacting Chelsea fans right now.'

Meanwhile, in September the BBC reported that Liverpool have shut down 145,000 ticket accounts over the past two years as part of their action against touting.

Speaking recently about the issue, the head of the Football Supporters Association Tom Greatrex said: 'Long-term supporters are finding it impossible to get tickets because of the way they are made available through secondary agencies.

'This is becoming endemic across the game.'

The move, if it is made into legislation, should effectively reduce the often extortionate prices of tickets on these resale websites.

When discussing the government's move, Rocio Concha, director of policy and advocacy at consumer organisation Which?, said: 'This is great news for music and sports fans.

'A price cap set at the ticket's original face value plus fees will rein in professional touts and put tickets back in the hands of real fans.

'For far too long, music and sports fans who missed out on tickets in the initial sales have been ripped off by touts on secondary ticketing sites and forced to pay over the odds to see their favourite artist perform or watch their team play.

Chelsea received 350,000 attempted bot purchases for their opening game of the season

'The Government must listen to our coalition of performers, fans, consumer groups and the UK music industry and show that the price cap is a priority by including the necessary legislation in the King's Speech.'

Ticketmaster's parent company Live Nation Entertainment also backed the move.

In a statement the firm said: 'Live Nation fully supports the UK Government's plan to ban ticket resale above face value.

'Ticketmaster already limits all resale in the UK to face value prices and this is another major step forward for fans, cracking down on exploitative touting to help keep live events accessible. We encourage others around the world to adopt similar fan-first policies.'

But resale firm StubHub warned the move could fuel the black market in tickets.

A spokesman for StubHub International said: 'The Government's intention to implement a price cap on the resale of live event tickets will condemn fans to take risks to see their favourite live events.

'With a price cap on regulated marketplaces, ticket transactions will move to black markets.

'When a regulated market becomes a black market, only bad things happen for consumers. Fraud, fear and zero recourse.'