Paris 2024 achieves its first record with 8.6 million tickets sold

According to data provided by the organising committee to the AFP news agency, over 8.6 million tickets have already been sold for the Olympic Games. This figure surpasses the record of 8.3 million tickets sold for the Atlanta Games, which until now had held the highest number.

"We have already exceeded those numbers for some time. Right now, we are at 8.6 million for the Olympic programme and have sold over 1 million for the Paralympic programme," stated Tony Estanguet, president of the organising committee for these Olympics. Apparently, reliable data on the volume of tickets is only held by the IOC, which is the body that announced the excellent sales pace.

The organisers predict that ticket sales could surpass ten million for the Paris event, which will take place from 26 July to 11 August, and 3.4 million for the Paralympic edition, scheduled for 28 August to 8 September. "The good news is that in this final stage, we are making a certain number of tickets available to the public for many sports," said Estanguet.

Tony Estanguet, president of the organising committee. GETTY IMAGES.

The president also explained that there is a wide range of prices where interested parties can find very good opportunities to attend the Games, as well as the opening and closing ceremonies, which will feature numerous musical, audiovisual, and dance performances. "We are proud to have already broken the record, but we can still do better," Estanguet added.

Regarding the pricing of the tickets, a dual criterion is being followed in broad terms; both the level of demand and the capacity of the stadiums influence the prices. Thus, it is not surprising that it is more expensive to attend athletics, swimming, and basketball events, while for other sports such as golf, water polo, rugby sevens, or football, prices are set below $100 (91,83€).

On the other hand, tickets for special ceremonies such as the opening ceremony went on sale from $90 (82,65€), although this figure tends to rise as the start date approaches, as it is an event that is usually very popular among visitors and no one wants to miss it.

Beyond these options, users also have the possibility to purchase so-called hospitality packages, which, in addition to guaranteed tickets for the sports sessions, offer a wide range of additional premium and VIP options: accommodation, personalised attention, and access to exclusive spaces and catering services. The price of these packages can range around $500 (459,12€) for the early qualifying rounds and go up to $4,000 (3673,34€) for the finals.