It is that time of the season once again where Stadium Management South Africa, law enforcement, and other stakeholders will have to brace themselves and get all their ducks in a row ahead of the Soweto derby.
Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs will lock horns at the FNB Stadium on Sunday, with bragging rights, three points, the league title, and CAF spots all at stake.
Now, with the fixture already sold out, the Calabash is expected to have about 90 000 spectators in and around the Nasrec precinct. Usually, during the Soweto derby, two of the most common challenges have been managing the crowds inside the stadium and traffic.
But recently, the latest challenge has been the new MyTicket ticketing system introduced by Stadium Management in January, with the aim of managing ticketing and access control in-house across the stadiums and venues under its management.
According to SMSA, the decision follows a detailed review of challenges experienced over time with traditional third-party ticketing models.
However, despite the negative feedback and reviews about the MyTicket system, SMSA has insisted on the necessity of a digital ticketing system and stated that they are prepared for the biggest fixture of the season on Sunday.
Ticketing causes overcrowding around stadium
“Ticketing is one of the issues that causes overcrowding within the stadium, so the focus was on eliminating people without tickets in the precinct,” said SMSA CEO Bertie Grobbelaar during the Soweto derby press conference on Thursday.
“And how do we do that? It starts when fans leave their homes, and with the amount of traffic within the precinct, for the first time, there will be event and vehicle zones, where people who will be driving will be required to have parking tickets.
“The tickets are sold on the ticketing platform, and without that, drivers will unfortunately be redirected away from the venue because we have limited parking within the area. At the previous derby [in February], there were about 5000 extra vehicles … more than the capacity.”
Network issues addressed
Grobbelaar went on to address the issue of the network within the stadium, as thousands of fans have complained about challenges of accessing their tickets due to low network connectivity.
“There is a perception that you need to have connectivity for your ticket to function, but it is not correct. As long as you downloaded the ticket and added it to your wallet [an option on the app], you can switch off your mobile data, and the ticket security features will still be available.
“So, you don’t need data to get your tickets scanned. Fans must download tickets before leaving their homes to make the process smoother.
“But we know there are people who will not do that, so we have ensured that all around the venue, for this derby, there will be a free Wi-Fi hotspot available. You won’t require a password for it, so fans can use that to download their tickets, and each user will have a minimum of five minutes per session,” he added.
The game between the Buccaneers and Amakhosi is scheduled to get underway at 3pm on Sunday.
- The Soweto derby between Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs at FNB Stadium on Sunday is a highly anticipated event with 90,000 spectators expected and significant stakes including bragging rights, league title, and CAF spots.
- Stadium Management South Africa (SMSA) has introduced a new digital ticketing system called MyTicket in January to manage ticketing and access control internally, replacing traditional third-party models despite some negative feedback.
- To address issues of overcrowding and traffic, SMSA will enforce parking tickets and create event and vehicle zones, redirecting drivers without parking tickets away from the venue due to limited parking space.
- SMSA CEO Bertie Grobbelaar clarified that ticket scanning does not require mobile data if tickets are downloaded and saved to a digital wallet beforehand, aiming to reduce ticketing delays inside the stadium.
- For those who do not download tickets in advance, free, password-free Wi-Fi hotspots with at least five minutes of access per user will be available around the stadium to facilitate ticket downloads on game day.
It is that time of the season once again where Stadium Management
Now, with the fixture already sold out, the
But recently, the latest challenge has been the new MyTicket ticketing system introduced by Stadium Management in January, with the aim of managing ticketing and access control in-house across the stadiums and venues under its management.
However, despite the negative feedback and reviews about the MyTicket system, SMSA has insisted on the necessity of a digital ticketing system and stated that they are prepared for the biggest fixture of the season on
“
“
“
Grobbelaar went on to address the issue of the network within the stadium, as thousands of fans have complained about challenges of accessing their tickets due to low network connectivity.
“
“So, you don’t need data to get your tickets scanned. Fans must download tickets before leaving their homes to make the process smoother.
“But we know there are people who will not do that, so we have ensured that all around the venue, for this derby, there will be a free Wi-Fi hotspot available. You won’t require a password for it, so fans can use that to download their tickets, and each user will have a minimum of five minutes per session,” he added.
