How to get Champions League tickets: clubs, the final ballot and resale rules
TUREFF• •0
Watching a Champions League night in the stadium is one of football's great experiences, but tickets are not sold like ordinary concert seats. Most go through the clubs, demand often outstrips supply and the final has its own system. Here is how it usually works, with the caveat that each club and each final sets its own details.
League phase and knockout matches
For matches before the final, tickets are sold by the home club, not by UEFA.
- Members and season-ticket holders usually get priority. Many clubs include European home matches in season tickets or offer them first to existing holders.
- Club membership schemes often give access to sales windows before the general public. Some clubs use loyalty points based on previous purchases to decide who gets the most popular matches.
- General sale, if any seats remain, comes last and can sell out in minutes.
- Sales windows are often short, because fixtures and kick-off times are confirmed only a few weeks ahead.
Sign up to the club's newsletter and create an account on its official ticketing site early, because registration and identity checks can take time.
Tickets in the away end
Away fans receive an allocation from the visiting club, which sells it to its own supporters, usually through the same priority system. UEFA has a price cap on away tickets in its club competitions, which has been lowered in recent seasons, and rules that away fans should not pay more than home fans for a comparable seat. Check the current cap and conditions with your club.
If you are a neutral, buying a home ticket and sitting among home fans is the norm. Do not buy away-section tickets from unofficial sources: segregation rules are strict and you may be refused entry.
The final
The final is organised by UEFA at a stadium chosen years in advance, and the ticket split typically looks like this:
- Each finalist receives a large allocation that it distributes to its own supporters, usually through members' ballots and loyalty schemes.
- A share is sold to the general public through a UEFA ballot on its official website. Applications open for a limited window, usually months before the final and before the finalists are known, and a draw decides who may buy. It is not first come, first served.
- The rest goes to UEFA, national associations, sponsors, broadcasters and hospitality.
In recent finals UEFA has also reserved its cheapest category for fans of the two finalist clubs. Successful public applicants can usually buy only a small number of tickets, and ticket holders may need to be named.
Resale: use official channels only
UEFA and clubs set strict terms that prohibit unauthorised resale. Tickets bought in breach of those terms can be cancelled, and holders can be refused entry.
- Many clubs run their own official resale or ticket exchange where members can sell seats they cannot use at face value.
- Mobile tickets tied to an app and an account are now common, which makes unofficial transfers far harder and riskier.
Unofficial resale sites, social media sellers and touts are where most scams happen: fake tickets, tickets that are cancelled before the match, or nothing delivered at all.
Practical tips
- Register early with the club or UEFA ticketing account and keep your details up to date.
- Read the terms and conditions of each sale, including transfer rules and identity requirements.
- Bring identification that matches the ticket name if required.
- Allow plenty of time for entry, especially at the final, where security checks are thorough.
- Do not post photos of your ticket online; the barcode can be copied.
- Hospitality packages sold by official partners are a legitimate, if expensive, alternative.
Ticketing processes change from season to season, so always check the official club or UEFA website for the match you want. Have you managed to get Champions League tickets? Share your tips in the comments.