U2 fans still hope to find tickets they’re looking for

U2’s Irish fans will have an anxious wait this morning to see if they can secure tickets for the band’s first Irish concert in four years at Croke Park next June.

Thousands of the group’s most dedicated followers are believed to have already spent $40 (€30.70) to have access to a priority ticket sale as paid-up subscribers of U2’s website.

Many fans paid the additional fee in order to improve their chances of obtaining tickets for U2’s home leg of their Vertigo world tour on June 24 before they go on sale to the general public on February 4.

Demand for the online priority booking forced the website to close its offer to new registrations last week.

Subscribers to the U2 fan club who beat the deadline have been issued with a personal access code which should allow them book up to four tickets each when the pre-sale begins at 10am today.

However, a similar online ticket scheme for shows in the US and Europe has been dogged by problems, with hundreds of irate fans registering complaints online.

A spokesperson for U2.com last week apologised for the inability of some fans to secure tickets, claiming the problem was due to technical difficulties caused by the level of demand for tickets.

The group’s spokesperson has also stressed that it cannot give a guarantee to people who pre-register that they will obtain tickets.

Last night, a Ticketmaster spokesperson sought to reassure Irish fans who had subscribed for access to the priority booking scheme. “We have taken every precaution to ensure there are no glitches,” said the spokesperson.

It is known that U2 have an option to perform another two concerts at Croke Park on June 25-26, but the group has so far only confirmed one Irish date.