My Article Database: Free Articles for Teaching and Studying English as a Foreign Language in China - by Paul Sparks




 Homepage
 About Me
 Teachers
 Students
 Lessons
 Photographs
 Links
 World News
 ICQ Chat
 Contact Me
 Articles
 
My Article Database:

 

Accounting
Acne
Adsense
Advertising
Aerobics
Affiliate
Alternative
Articles
Attraction
Auctions
Audio Streaming
Auto Care
Auto Parts
Auto Responder
Aviation
Babies Toddler
Baby
Bankruptcy
Bathroom
Beauty
Bedroom
Blogging
Body Building
Book Marketing
Book Review
Branding
Breast Cancer
Broadband Internet
Business
Business Loan
Business Plan
Cancer
Car Buying
Career
Car Insurance
Car Loan
Car Maintenance
Cars
Casino
Cell Phone
Chat
Christmas
Claims
Coaching
Coffee
College University
Computer Tips
Cooking
Cooking Tips
Copywriting
Cosmetics
Craft
Creative Writing
Credit
Credit Cards
Credit Repair
Currency Trading
Data Recovery
Dating
Debt Relief
Diabetics
Diet
Digital Camera
Diving
Divorce
Domain
Driving Tips
Ebay
Ebook
Ecommerce
Email Marketing
E Marketing
Essay
Ezine
Fashion
Finance
Fishing
Fitness
Flu
Furniture
Gambling
Golf
Google
GPS
Hair
Hair Loss
HDTV
Health Insurance
Heart Disease
Hobbies
Holiday
Home Business
Home Improvement
Home Organization
Interior Design
Internet Tips
Investment
Jewelry
Kitchen
Ladies Accessories
Lawyer
LCD / PLASMA
Legal
Life Insurance

Return to Articles about Sports

Ticket Scalping: A Victimless Crime?

by: Jeff Howard

Ticket Scalping: A Victimless Crime?
By Jeff Howard

I admit it. Many, many years ago I purchased a ticket from
a ticket scalper outside Texas Stadium. If memory serves
correct, I paid $70 for a ticket with a face value around
$15. Like I said it was many, many years ago, and I was
young and naive.

At the time I felt relieved to have a ticket. The game was
a sell out, but as soon as I found my seat, I felt cheated.
Let's just say it was a very bad seat. One of the worst in
the house to be sure, but still good enough for me to see
the visiting Chicago Bears destroy Dallas 44-0!

My bad experience aside, many fans see scalpers as their
only option for getting into sold out events. At worst
they see ticket scalping as a low-level, victimless crime.

I would suggest, however, that the fact prove otherwise.

Investigative reports around the country have uncovered
highly organized groups of professional ticket scalpers who
control street-level ticket sales in many major league
sports cities. Often these men have ties to organized
crime and lengthy criminal records. As seasoned criminals
they are quick to threaten a customer or turn violent when
a transaction doesn't go their way.

Certainly not all the scalpers seen hawking tickets
outside your local stadium fall into this category, but
the threat is widespread and very real.

Using various techniques, these groups acquire tickets
from season ticket holders, ticket agencies, and even the
team's box office. In some cases they work closely with
team employees to ensure a constant supply of tickets.
They also aggressively solicit fans seeking to buy spare
tickets at discounted prices.

Sadly this leaves the typical fan literally on the outside
looking in. Fans who can't get tickets through the more
traditional channels are forced to deal with these groups
if they want to see a game in person.

As always I recommend you avoid scalpers if at all
possible. I agree there may be certain situations when you
have no choice, but don't make it a habit. In my opinion
there are just too many risks, and besides you can get
tickets to just about any event without them as long as
you're prepared to put a little effort into it.

With that said, if you decide to approach one outside the
stadium, please remember who you're dealing with. This
person might be a convicted drug dealer, thief, or worse a
violent criminal. In addition, he might have ties to
organized crime. Above all use your common sense and
proceed with caution.

I'm sure the majority of fans who purchase tickets from a
scalper don't suffer from the level of 'buyer's remorse'
I felt inside Texas Stadium, and they certainly don't
experience anything close to assault and battery. However,
threats, intimidation and violence have become a part of
the ticket scalping business in many cities so please be
careful out there.

Copyright 2005 All Rights Reserved
************************************************
Jeff Howard publishes SportsTicketSecrets Tip Sheet, a
monthly ezine providing tips, news, information, and
advice for all sports fans who are tired of watching the
"BIG" games on TV. To subscribe and receive a preview of
his latest publication "Super Bowl Ticket Secrets" visit
http://www.superbowlticketsecrets.com
************************************************

*** Digital Reprint Rights ***
* If you publish this article in a website/forum/blog,
please set all URL's or Mailto addresses in the body of
the article and in the Author's Resource Box as
hyperlinks (clickable links).

* Links must remain clean and unchaged without redirects
having been inserted into the copy.

* Please do not change or delete any Words or links in the
Article or Resource Box.

* Email distribution of this article must be done through
opt-in email only. No unsolicited commercial email please.

* You are allowed to format the layout of the article for
proper display in your website or in your ezine, as long
as the words, links and resource box are not changed or
deleted.

*** Author Notification ***
Please leave the resource box intact with an active link,
and send a courtesy copy of the publication in which the
article appears to: Jeff@SportsTicketSecrets.com



Please leave the resource box intact with an active link,
and send a courtesy copy of the publication in which the
article appears to: Jeff@SportsTicketSecrets.com




Contact him at http://www.superbowlticketsecrets.com

 

New! Watch Online Articles with YouTube for Free:

 

 

 

 

Click Here to Return to Top of Page