SMSA steps up with upgraded ticketing system as FNB Stadium enters peak football period

The #MyTicket system, introduced to improve the match-day experience for fans, made its debut during last month’s Betway Premiership match between Kaizer Chiefs and Golden Arrows.

The system encountered some minor glitches, but Grobbelaar says the process was a test and that they are now perfecting it.

"We're busy rolling it out under a new system, you need to test, adapt and retest. I see the feedback in some instances, people referring to it as a messy system. I think that's unfortunate,” Grobbelaar said. 

“Change sometimes comes with a bit of mess and we had objectives for the first event and the objective was to make sure that no one gets past without a ticket or with a fake ticket, that box was ticked. So, from a ticketing perspective and from a venue ticketing platform perspective we are very happy with that outcome."

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The new ticketing system features two scanning points as SMSA seeks a safer, faster system that enhances access control and curbs ticket fraud.

Last year, during one of the Soweto derbies, more than 110 000 entered through the turnstiles because of counterfeit tickets.

Grobbelaar says this new system will curb that.

"With the messiness that occurred is the first scanning point and there's a lot of people that ask but why do you implement two scanning points? Remember, let's use a holistic number, 10 000 people that got into the stadium without tickets, if you prevent them from getting in, they're now stuck outside the turnstiles,” he explained.

“So, you need to do everything possible to keep them away from the turnstiles, so you need a point where you can identify and remove unticketed individuals or fake ticket holders from reaching the turnstiles."

The new system also uses rotating QR codes to combat cloning and address the rising use of fake tickets, something that has troubled football authorities globally. Grobbelaar explains that this allows the fans to scan their own tickets and says they are going full steam with this system.