Vol. 437 No. 7
16 Mr. Currie asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs the arrangements, if any, he intends to make with the United States authorities so that Irish passport holders resident in Northern Ireland will obtain visas to attend World Cup matches in the USA.
39 Mr. Rabbitte asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs in regard to his recent meeting in Dublin with representatives of the World Cup organising committee, the progress, if any, made towards securing a reasonable supply of tickets at affordable prices; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 16 and 39 together.
The US authorities have assured me that all Irish passport-holders who are genuine football supporters will have their visa applications dealt with sympathetically. In accordance with US regulations, passport holders resident in Northern Ireland should apply to the US Consulate-General in Belfast. I am sure that the Consulate will take the same constructive approach in dealing with applications as the US Embassy in Dublin.
The situation with regard to match tickets remains difficult. I met the managing director of World Cup Travel Services, Mr. John Lane, during his recent visit to Dublin. World Cup Travel Services is a company jointly established by FIFA, the Zurich-base international football federation, and the World Cup Organising Committee in New York.
In my discussion with Mr. Lane, I emphasised two points in particular: first, the need for an adequate supply of tickets for the large numbers of Irish supporters wishing to travel and, second, our concern about reports that tickets are being offered for sale at exorbitant prices on the black market in the US. Mr. Lane undertook to do his best to increase the allocation of tickets for Irish tour operators but was not optimistic that he could supply enough to meet the demand. With regard to black market tickets, his unequivocal advice was that fans should have nothing to do with ticket touts.
Apart from the tickets made available through the travel trade, there is also an allocation directly by FIFA through national football associations. In an effort to increase our allocation through this channel, I have written to the general secretary of FIFA in Zurich, emphasising the tremendous interest on the part of Irish supporters in travelling to the US matches and requesting FIFA to make every effort to increase the supply of tickets available here.
Overall, the ticket supply remains problematic and there is no guarantee that demands will be met. I assure Deputies, however, that we are staying in very close contact with the FAI and the travel trade and we will use every channel open to us to ensure the best possible allocation for Irish fans.
