Andy Murray 'Dream final' tickets could be costliest ever

TICKETS for an Andy Murray v Roger Federer Wimbledon final could become the most expensive tickets ever sold for a UK sporting event.

As black market briefs for Murray's semi-final against Andy Roddick were advertised for £11,000, experts said a "dream final" between Scot and the Swiss world No 1 could see prices rocket to a new high.

Eric Baker, chief executive of online ticket retailer Viagogo, said: "Before Murray's game yesterday tickets for the semi-finals were trading for an average of £1,500. In the few hours after he won, the price rocketed by 180 per cent.

"If he wins his semi-final, tickets for the final are sure be well in excess of £10,000 and may even be closer to £20,000.

"We have never seen anything like this and we could be set for a UK record for the most expensive tickets ever bought," Mr Baker said.

It is against the rules of the All England Club to sell on non-debenture tickets.

Of the 15,000 seats on Centre Court, 2,300 are debentures. Viagogo said it was selling debenture tickets, which is legal.

However, websites eBay and Gumtree.com were both selling some of the 12,700 non-debenture tickets. On eBay, a seller called "Somerfield62" was selling two £92 tickets for £5,000 – 27 times face value.

Another eBay seller, "Ramusramus", was offering two tickets for £2,000 in block 315, row V, adding: "Two great tickets next to each other. Tickets are in hand and can be collected from W11 today or tomorrow morning."

Yesterday one pair of Centre Court tickets for the men's final attracted a bid on eBay of £2,500. Another pair, with a face value of £200, attracted bids of £1,260.

Wimbledon officials have also been trying to crack down on fraudulent websites.

Ian Ritchie, chief executive of the All England Club, said the Metropolitan Police's economic crime unit had been contacted to try to close down the site: "We are always worried and we have raised it with the police.

"On previous occasions we've looked to take out injunctions.

"People should be very careful. Always check where they get their tickets from and the source of the tickets."

He said people arrived at the gates every year with invalid tickets and had to be sent away.

Some fans have complained that they are unable to queue for Centre Court tickets on the final four days of the tournament, while several hundred tickets are still available online.

The tickets go on sale on the Ticketmaster website every evening at 8:30pm for the next day's play.

Mr Ritchie said it was not possible to accommodate people queuing for the semi-finals and finals because they could spend weeks at the campsite.

Student Shaun West, 20, from east London, said: "I queued for Murray's quarter-final and it's unfair there are no Centre Court tickets for queuing fans for the semi.

"Wimbledon should put the spare Ticketmaster tickets on the gate so that real fans watch Murray, not people who get lucky on the internet."

Sarah James, 23, a marketing executive from Brighton, said: "Andy has so many fans and it's crazy that those who queue can't see him play now.

"The spare tickets should go to the queue. Whoever is in charge at Wimbledon really needs to have a look at themselves about this."

The unavailability of Centre Court tickets for the final days means the campsite clears out. Yesterday there were just two tents left.

CAPITAL SCREEN

ANDY Murray's semi-final match with Andy Roddick will be shown on a giant screen in Edinburgh city centre.

The 25-square metre television in Festival Square, off Lothian Road, has already proved popular with sports fans. It was put up earlier this year in preparation for the 2012 Olympics.

A council spokesman said Festival Square's giant screen had proved to be very popular this week, especially during the lunch hour and evenings, and it was expected to attract even bigger crowds as the Wimbledon tournament continues.

The city's culture leader, Councillor Deidre Brock, said: "I'm sure everyone in Edinburgh is rooting for Andy Murray to go all the way at Wimbledon."

However, the Met Office has forecast heavy showers for Edinburgh today and on Sunday, with top temperatures reaching about 20C.

COST OF A CHAMPION: £2.5M

THE cost of creating a Wimbledon champion was put at £2.5 million yesterday.

The figure was worked out by the Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT), who looked at the cost of lessons, summer camps and academies.

The AAT said that while parents paid about £330 for an introductory camp, a year-long stint at a specialist training academy was in the region of £34,000.

The calculations include the cost of ferrying children back and forth, visiting them abroad and taking time off work. "Raising a Wimbledon winner is like managing a small business," said AAT director of finances Tom Kelman.

"The parents of future tennis stars need to be on the ball when it comes to balancing the books and managing the household accounts.

"But I expect there's no better reward than seeing your child lift the trophy on Centre Court."