How to get tickets to the world's biggest events

Last verified 12 October 2026

The ICC's free ticket ballot for the Men's Cricket World Cup 2027 in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia runs 1 October to 21 November 2026. How it works, what tickets cost and the key matches.

Last verified 12 October 2026

The Unbound Gravel 2027 lottery runs 1 to 15 November 2026 with results on 21 November, free to enter. Plus the Leadville Trail 100 MTB lottery, 1 to 15 December 2026, and the routes that skip both draws.

Last verified 6 October 2026

Maratona dles Dolomites 2027 pre-entry runs 14 October to 10 November 2026 for EUR 3. The draw is in the second half of November 2026, drawn riders pay the EUR 165 registration and a refundable EUR 10 chip deposit by 10 December. Race day 4 July 2027.

Last verified 6 October 2026

The TCS Sydney Marathon 2027 ballot is free to enter. The ballot window is 10:00 AEST 29 September to 10:00 AEDT 19 October 2026, results and card charges 3 November, race day 29 August 2027.

Last verified 5 October 2026

There is no public Boston Marathon lottery. 2027 entry is by qualifying time, and the cut-off was 5:17 under standard: 33,649 qualifiers applied for 30,000 places and 8,019 were turned away.

Last verified 5 October 2026

No home union runs an open public ballot for Six Nations 2027 tickets. England routes seats through clubs, Twickenham residents and an accessibility ballot, and Scotland, Ireland and Wales have not dated their 2027 sales.

Last verified 27 September 2026

There was no ballot for the Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya 2026. Tickets were sold first come, first served to anyone worldwide with a free Supporter ID. General sale opened 30 June 2026 and each session sold until its own date. The Games ran 19 September to 4 October 2026.

Last verified 22 September 2026

The AJ Bell Great North Run 2027 September Ballot closed 23:59 on Sunday 20 September 2026 and was drawn Monday 21 September; every entrant has been emailed their result. The GBP 70 fee was charged only if you were selected. The organiser has confirmed a second, January 2027 ballot for anyone who missed out.

Last verified 17 August 2026

The Australian Open has no ticket ballot. AO 2027 tickets went on general sale on 13 August 2026, the earliest on-sale ever, and Ground Pass allocations are capped for the first time. The official route, in order.

Last verified 6 October 2026

The Chicago Marathon 2027 non-guaranteed entry drawing is free to apply for. Applications run 8 October to 14:00 US Central on 29 October 2026, with results emailed 8 December 2026.

Last verified 20 September 2026

The US Open runs no ticket ballot or lottery. 2026 tickets were sold first come, first served through Ticketmaster from 28 May, the tournament ran 30 August to 13 September, and no 2027 on-sale dates are announced yet.

Last verified 1 October 2026

There is no ballot for the AIG Women's Open. Tickets are a first come, first served sale, and the 2026 championship at Royal Lytham sold out before it started. Royal St George's 2027 early-bird tickets are already on sale from GBP 18.

Last verified 24 July 2026

Euro 2028 tickets go on sale only after the final tournament draw, expected December 2027, allocated by a free-entry ballot with no dynamic pricing. Full details and prices land in autumn 2027.

Last verified 14 September 2026

Wimbledon public ballot results arrive by email as rolling ticket offers, sent from October 2026 onwards for the 2027 Championships. What the offer looks like, what no email yet means, and what to do if you miss out.

Last verified 2 August 2026

Ryder Cup Europe confirmed on 31 July 2026 that the Adare Manor ballot is settled and general admission is sold out, with winners emailed over the previous seven days. What a win costs, and what is still officially available.

Last verified 22 September 2026

FIFA says Brazil 2027 tickets go on sale towards the end of 2026, across multiple sales phases, exclusively through FIFA.com. No phase dates, prices or draw have been announced. What is confirmed and what is not.

Last verified 20 July 2026

Nothing is on sale for the 2030 World Cup and there is no register-of-interest yet. Based on the 2026 cycle, the first public ticket draw is likely around September 2029. What is confirmed, and what is not.

Last verified 25 August 2026

There is no NFL London ticket ballot. On-sale for all three 2026 games has been open since May (Wembley) and July (Tottenham), first come, first served. What you need to buy, and the one free step that still matters.

Last verified 2 August 2026

There was no ballot for Glasgow 2026 sport sessions: tickets were first come, first served on the official portal, with a face-value resale platform for returns. The Games ran 23 July to 2 August 2026. What the official routes were, and what comes next.

Last verified 5 October 2026

Grand Sumo tickets sell through a ladder of lotteries before every tournament. For the November 2026 basho, both free lotteries (Ticket Oosumo and Ticket Pia pre-reserve) closed by 7 September, with Ticket Pia results announced from 9 September; general sale opened 19 September and sold out on every date.

Last verified 14 September 2026

The ECB ballot ran 2 to 29 September 2026; Lord's runs its own to 26 October and the Kia Oval to 15 November 2026. How to enter, venue by venue, and the general sale dates.

Last verified 15 July 2026

You cannot change the odds of one ballot draw. What you can control: how many draws you enter, and never missing a deadline. The honest levers that actually work.

Last verified 15 July 2026

Missing or losing a ticket ballot is not the end. Official resale and returns, later first-come sales, member ballots and next year's draw are all still ahead.

Last verified 27 July 2026

Every official FIFA World Cup 2026 ticket route closed with the final on 19 July 2026. How the free draws and the last-minute sale actually worked, and how to be early for 2030 and Brazil 2027.

Last verified 11 October 2026

Six of the seven Abbott World Marathon Majors run a free-to-enter 2027 ballot. Tokyo and London have already closed; Chicago and Sydney have confirmed autumn 2026 windows; Berlin's lottery runs 1 October to 12 November 2026; New York has not published 2027 dates. Boston has no lottery: its 2027 Registration Week ran 14 to 18 September 2026. Dates, odds and links.

Last verified 12 July 2026

Roland-Garros sells general-public tickets through a free December draw (tirage au sort), not a first-come sale. How to register, when it runs, and what winning actually gets you.

Last verified 1 October 2026

The Masters 2027 ticket lottery results are out: selection complete, all tickets awarded, the payment window for winners closed 7 August 2026. Free to apply, prices and odds explained.

Last verified 1 October 2026

The RWC 2027 ballot is over. General sale opened 1 October 2026 at tickets.rugbyworldcup.com, first-come-first-served. Prices, setup, what to expect.

Last verified 20 September 2026

Tokyo Marathon 2027 general ballot results were announced 18 September 2026; the payment window ran 18 to 30 September 2026, or the place was forfeited. Entry was free: only drawn runners pay JPY 19,800 or USD 230. Odds run at roughly 10 to 1.

Last verified 2 September 2026

The Wimbledon 2027 public ballot closed at 23:59 BST on 14 September 2026. Free entry is over for this cycle: offer emails go out from October 2026 with no published end date, and The Queue and the paid debenture market remain the routes left.

Last verified 8 July 2026

What a ticket ballot is, why Wimbledon, the Masters and the Olympics use them, what entering costs (usually nothing), your real odds, and how to avoid resale scams.

Last verified 25 August 2026

LA28 Visa Presale slots were notified on 27 July and the presale ran 29 to 31 July 2026. No email was not a rejection: unsuccessful entrants went into Drop 2 automatically, notified 6 to 7 August, with purchase slots that ran 10 to 20 August.

Last verified 17 August 2026

The 2027 Open ticket ballot at St Andrews closed on 24 July 2026. Results came in waves through August and September, with every applicant hearing by the end of September, and unsuccessful applications staying in for later waves.