Fans hoping to purchase Green Day tickets for the upcoming North American tour should be prepared to face purchasing restrictions when public on-sales begin May 8. A number of venues are listing “Forced Will Call” notices, as well as other restrictions, on Ticketmaster event pages for the popular punk rock trio.
One of the affected shows is July 16 at Copps Coliseum in Hamilton, ON. The forced Will Call pick-up was initiated by Green Day, according to Alipa Patel, marketing and communications manager for Copps Coliseum. It is unclear whether all concerts on the tour will carry the restriction, or just those currently listing the notice on Ticketmaster.
Patel told TicketNews that only 3,500 out of 13,000 available tickets will be affected by the process, including all floor passes, as well as tickets for sections 107, 108, 122, 123 and the front of sections 106 and 124.
Purchases are limited to four-ticket blocks and attendees must present the purchasing credit card, order confirmation number, and a photo ID. Upon being issued tickets, the holders will then immediately be ushered into the venue and cannot leave.
Patel noted that no exceptions would be made at the doors for the event. She advised, “If you are gifting or anticipating an exchange, I would recommend purchasing tickets outside the restricted sections.”
However, for fans hoping to catch the punk rock band’s August 7 performance at New Orleans Arena in New Orleans, LA, might encounter an entirely different problem when purchasing their tickets. As noted on the event page on Ticketmaster, sales for the concert will be geographically restricted.
Only residents of Louisiana, Mississippi, southern Alabama and the Florida panhandle will be able to purchase tickets, based on the billing address of the purchasing credit card. Other would-be attendees can expect their purchases to be “canceled without notice and refunds given,” according to the Ticketmaster notice. (See below.)
When contacted by TicketNews, media and box office representatives for the New Orleans Arena declined to comment on the ticketing procedure. It is unclear whether all purchases outside the region will be cancelled or only orders deemed suspect by sale officials.
The geographic restriction appears to be venue-initiated. Other upcoming concert events booked at the Big Easy venue have restrictions listed on Ticketmaster, including Jonas Brothers and Creed. However, no additional Green Day concerts currently carry the restriction.
Forcing a day-of Will Call pick-up has become a popular option for performers hoping to limit ticket resale. In South Carolina, the Bi-Lo Center implemented a similar Will Call procedure for a May 21 Kenny Chesney concert. Meanwhile, supergroup Chickenfoot opted to make tickets Will Call only for its upcoming North American debut tour.
The Arizona Cardinals have enacted geographical restrictions previously. Tickets for a game against the Philadelphia Eagles were limited to Arizona residents for the first 36 hours of the sale.
