How to tell if your Super Bowl ticket is legit

How to tell if your Super Bowl ticket is legit

Super Bowl tickets are the Holy Grail for die-hard NFL football fans.

To help eliminate the sale of fake tickets the NFL has incorporated several security devices built into official Super Bowl tickets. Some of the overt security devices include holograms, custom laser cutouts, thermachromic ink and a specially-made gloss varnish. A counterfeit ticket may be missing one or even several of these or other security features.

The NFL also provides you with a secure, official resale marketplace to purchase your Super Bowl tickets, the NFL Ticket Exchange. Buying online from a non-NFL affiliate may be risky since there is no way of knowing if a ticket is real until game time. Even if a ticket looks real, it may be one that has been reported lost or stolen, which means the person holding it will not be granted entry into the stadium.

To help ensure the authenticity of your Super Bowl tickets, here are a few basic buying tips:

» Do not buy tickets from anyone selling tickets on the street or in front of the venue. Scalpers are typically unregulated and unlicensed, leaving you open to fraud, including stolen and counterfeit tickets.

» Always use a credit card or other secure form of payment. If ordering online, make sure the site offers a fully secure ordering process and utilizes state-of-the-art technology to protect your personal information, including your credit card number.

» Do verify the location of the seats on a seating chart to avoid being misled into purchasing obstructed view seats or seats that simply do not exist.
Look:

» The back of an official ticket may feature a two-tone hologram which changes with the angle of the ticket in sunlight. A fake Super Bowl ticket may have a sticker to imitate a hologram, only the image on the counterfeit sticker does not change.

» On a genuine ticket embossed images will be clear, crisp and on high-quality silver foil. Fake ticket images can be blurry, irregular and/or printed on low-quality stickers.
Feel:

» An official ticket will be printed on heavy card stock with flawless perforations on each edge of the ticket. A counterfeit ticket can be printed on thin, flimsy card stock and have irregular or crooked perforations, if the ticket has any at all.

The best way to buy your Super Bowl tickets on the resale market is through the NFL's only authorized resale marketplace, the NFL Ticket Exchange. All tickets sold on the Exchange are validated by Ticketmaster and the NFL before being offered for sale.

Purchase your Super Bowl tickets on the Official NFL Ticket Exchange with confidence knowing that they are 100 percent legitimate.