Ballots drawn for Lions tests

Fans will start finding out tomorrow if they've secured the opportunity to buy test match tickets for the British & Irish Lions tour next year.

Fans will start finding out tomorrow if they've secured the opportunity to buy test match tickets for the British & Irish Lions tour next year.

New Zealand Rugby General Manager for the DHL NZ Lions Series Nigel Cass said 150,000 entries were received in the online ballots for the three test matches between the All Blacks and the British & Irish Lions.

"The interest in attending the test matches has been unprecedented. We are now contacting those drawn in the ballots to provide the opportunity to purchase tickets to one of the three tests," he said.

"Those people whose names were pulled out of the ballots will be emailed with all the information about securing their tickets when the sale period opens on Friday November 25."

People wanting test match tickets were required to register online through September and October. The seven other tour matches featuring the New Zealand Provincial Barbarians, Maori All Blacks and five Super Rugby teams are currently on public sale with tickets available for all matches.

Mr Cass said all people who registered for the ballots would be contacted - whether they were successful in the ballots or not.

"We always knew demand would far outweigh the available number of test tickets we have, so, while we'll have thousands of people delighted at being drawn in the ballot, we will also have thousands of fans who will be disappointed they've missed out.

"We're grateful to every person who registered in the ballots and while the allocation for the Test is exhausted, New Zealanders can still be part of this iconic, once in a generation event with some tickets available across all other matches."

Mr Cass also cautioned people purchasing tickets from unofficial sources.

"The DHL NZ Lions Series 2017 is a major event under the 2007 Major Events Management Act, which means that tickets can't be sold above face value. The terms and conditions of the tickets also prevent resale or transfer to anyone the holder doesn't know personally."

Tickets for the series can only be purchased from authorised agents and through nzlionsseries.com, All Blacks Hospitality or All Blacks Tours.

Key information
Overview
* The DHL New Zealand Lions Series ballot for test match tickets has been run and NZR will communicate with successful and unsuccessful applicants on November 18.
* People could register for FOUR tickets for a Test match. 148,880 entries received.
* There are more than 250,000 tickets available for all 10 matches in the series to New Zealanders.

Contacting successful applicants
* All people who registered for the ballot will be contacted - whether they were successful in the ballots or not.
* Those people successful in the ballot via email with a ticket offer featuring a unique identification to purchase up to four tickets for a specific test match.
* Tickets can only be purchased online from November 25 to December 2.

Paying for tickets
* Match tickets for the DHL NZ Lions Series will be sold on a no-refund basis. People should also be aware of the terms and conditions regarding tickets, which prohibits the on-selling of tickets at a premium.
* A very high take up of tickets for successful applicants in the ballot is expected.

Ticket delivery
* Tickets will be delivered by courier via the ticketing agent.
* The ticket distribution process is expected to be completed by May 2017.