October 25, 2018

On 24 October 2018, Mr Justice Nugee granted an injunction to the owner of Cheltenham Racecourse – Jockey Club Racecourses Limited – prohibiting ticket touting by “persons unknown”. The injunction is viewed as vital progress in the fight against illegal ticket sellers and will be welcomed by professional sports clubs, competitions, venues and other stakeholders from across the UK sporting landscape.

The Order prohibits “persons unknown” from:

• selling or attempting to sell tickets and/or badges;
• buying or attempting to buy tickets and/or badges;
• assisting in the selling, or attempted selling, of tickets and/or badges; and
• assisting in the buying, or attempted buying, of tickets and/or badges,

contrary to Cheltenham Racecourse’s terms and conditions, on the Cheltenham Racecourse land marked out in the ‘Order Map’.

As a result of its wording, the Order not only captures ticket touts but also captures any individual assisting the ticket touting activity. A breach of the Order is a contempt of court and is punishable by fine, imprisonment and/or seizure of assets. The Order will remain in effect until 1 June 2019 (subject to further extension).

In order to effectively serve the Order on “persons unknown”, Jockey Club Racecourses Limited must, amongst other things, affix sealed copies of a ‘Take Note’ notice to posts, gates, fences and hedges at various locations on the Cheltenham Racecourse land.

Independent of the Order, Cheltenham Racecourse has already reshaped dustbins in order to make it more difficult for ticket touts to reclaim discarded barcoded tickets that can then be sold illegally to innocent racegoers, who are consequently unable to secure entry as the ticket has already been used and scanned by security staff.

The evidence before Mr Justice Nugee showed that the ticket touting activity, which has seen a marked increase in recent years, was causing significant harm to Jockey Club Racecourses Limited, members of the public attending race meetings and the image of horse racing itself. Recognising this harm, the injunction application was supported by both Gloucestershire Constabulary and Cheltenham Borough Council.

Football already has regulations against ticket touting, in part due to the need to separate rival fans. The general resale of football tickets is banned in the UK under s166 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 and s53 of the Violent Crime Reduction Act 2006. However, this Order goes further and is likely to play a key part in the drive to clear up ticket touting at British sporting events.

A copy of the Order, the Order Map and Take Note notice can be found on the Cheltenham Racecourse website.