July 23 – Liverpool have issued over 432 lifetime bans and 115 indefinite suspensions after a joint operation with Merseyside Police seized more than £1.2million in assets linked to the illegal selling of tickets.
The operation targeted the laundering of criminal proceeds from illicit ticket sales, running alongside the club’s own crackdown on touting both online and inside Anfield.
“This is a fantastic example of partnership working between ourselves and Liverpool Football Club for the good of the fans and the general public,” said Detective Chief Inspector Nick Suffield. “We will always take action to protect genuine fans who fall victim to touts.”
The scale of the operation is remarkable. Last season alone Liverpool analysed almost 700,000 ticket registrations, blocked or cancelled 67,663 suspected fake accounts, and have a further 121,379 under investigation. Another 3,847 tickets were cancelled for suspicious activity and returned to general sale. Matchday stops averaged 300 per home game.
Following the crackdown at Manchester United, it raises the question of how widespread is the practice of illicit ticket sales across the Premier League, with every well-supported club in the country having demand for tickets vastly exceeding supply.
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