Aug. 27, 2007

NOTRE DAME, Ind. – University of Notre Dame director of athletic ticketing Josh Berlo warns Irish fans to be extremely careful when they consider obtaining Notre Dame football tickets through non-University sources.

“Again this year, with ticket demand still at record levels, we have received numerous recent reports of fraudulent ticket offerings and scams.” Berlo says. “Unfortunately, con artists are still leveraging demand for tickets to trick people into paying for, or putting deposits on tickets they do not have.”

Those suspecting they have counterfeit tickets in their possession should contact their local law enforcement agency to report this as soon as possible. The investigating law enforcement agency then can contact the Notre Dame Counterfeit Ticket Task Force via the Notre Dame Security Police for assistance by calling 574-631-5555.

The organized efforts of the Counterfeit Ticket Task Force (CTF) yielded more than 20 arrests during 2006 home football game weekends. Convictions resulted in all cases where felony charges were levied against the counterfeit dealers. The CTF is made up of officers from the University of Notre Dame Security Police Department along with members from other local law enforcement agencies. The CTF works closely with investigators from the National Football League (NFL), members of law enforcement at other college football sites, other college and universities and the general public. Information is gathered, organized and shared to maximize the investigative efforts.

With early reports of high demand regarding 2007 Notre Dame football tickets, the CTF will be conducting undercover operations at every home game this fall seeking out those who are looking to profit with fraud and counterfeit tickets. Only tickets purchased directly from the University of Notre Dame can be guaranteed as authentic. The CTF is interested in any information regarding counterfeit ticket sales and the identification of persons responsible — but its biggest warning is to educate the public that these criminal enterprises are working in force in around the South Bend area. The groups are large and well directed — and as quickly as they make their money they leave for the next big game.

Clues to counterfeit tickets include fuzzy printing, rough cuts or perforations, mismatched fonts, and the absence of the custom authentic interlocking “ND” three-dimensional hologram. Be sure to review the front and back of your ticket for anything that looks irregular. Feel free to stop by the Stadium Ticket Office on the east side of Notre Dame Stadium on gameday to have your ticket verified. The Stadium Ticket Office opens at least three hours prior to each kickoff.

“How do you spot a scam? Is it too good to be true? Were you solicited via a SPAM email or online blog or chat room? Does it involve a wire transfer or money order? Does it involve a foreign country? Is it on an Internet auction Web site?” If you answered yes to any of those questions, chances are it is a scam or may involve invalid or stolen tickets.

The Notre Dame Ticket Office actively monitors and enforces the ticket resale policy in an effort to curb resale for profit and ticket fraud. More than 7,000 tickets have been suspended or revoked since the policy’s inception. Enforcement methods include active monitoring of more than 20 Internet ticket resale Web sites, periodic purchasing of tickets from these entities, undercover gameday operations, as well as follow-up on all leads provided to the ticket office. Suspected resale violation information can be sent to seller1@nd.edu.

If you have not been on campus the past few months, you will notice some significant changes to campus parking lots and roadways when you arrive for a football game. As such, many previous routes may no longer be viable. Additionally, the University is building a road from the Indiana Toll Road directly into the White Field parking lot.

The new road, which is expected to be completed in time for the Georgia Tech home opener, is right off exit 77 and will cross over State Road 933 into the White Field parking lot. It will only be open for home football games and a few other select events.

Remember, on game days, all parking at Notre Dame is reserved — with the exception of the White Field (located north of campus) and game day disabled patron parking (located in the D2 lot). RV parking is located in the White Field as well, and free shuttle buses are available to transport fans to and from that location. For the Georgia Tech game, the shuttle bus pre-game drop off and post-game pick up location will be the Library Circle; this location will change for future games. Remember, overnight parking is not allowed. If you have a reserved parking pass, please follow the directions printed on it and be aware they may have changed for 2007.

Please follow the directions of parking staff, law enforcement and security officers to keep things running smoothly before and after the game.

For more information about gamedays at Notre Dame or for directions to campus, call the Notre Dame Ticket Office at 574-631-7356 or visit the official tickets page at UND.com (football parking links are in the table below the banners).

If you have any questions, please contact the Notre Dame Ticket Office at 574-631-7356 or visit us at www.und.com.

— ND —