Welsh rugby fans who are quick enough off the mark will be able to pick up tickets to see two of Waless Lloyds TSB Autumn Series internationals at the Millennium Stadium for as little as £16.
Tickets for Wales four games in the Lloyds TSB Series went on public sale on Wednesday, 1 September with advance sale prices for the Friday night clashes against Romania on 12 November and Japan on 26 November as little as £8 for adults and £4 for children.
Friday nights will be fans night at the Millennium Stadium in November and we hope that our innovative ticketing policy will help create a real party atmosphere, said Millennium Stadium General Manager, Paul Sergeant.
The four games will give Mike Ruddocks men the perfect opportunity to test themselves against some of the best players in the world, but we are aware that it is asking a lot of the fans to come to the Millennium Stadium four weekends in a row.
Thats why we came up with this new ticketing strategy. It is obviously aimed at giving the Welsh team the best chance of playing in front of a healthy crowd, but it has also been created to reward the most loyal fans in the world game.
We know that everyone will want to come and cheer on Mike Ruddocks men in what will be our new coachs first home game on 6 November against the newly crowned Tri-Nations champions South Africa.
And no one will want to miss the return of Wales former coaches Graham Henry and Steve Hansen with the All Blacks on 20 November.
Tickets for the games against the two SANZAR countries cost the same as for the Six Nations – £42, £36, £29, £14 but we have pegged back the prices for the matches against Romania and Japan to make them as affordable as possible for fans and families.
Tens of thousands of tickets for the four games have already been sold to our member clubs, debenture and club seat holders. The first batch of tickets for the games against the Springboks and All Blacks went on public sale on Wednesday, 1 September.
Fans who buy tickets for the Japan and Romanian games will have a chance to buy a ticket for the South Africa and New Zealand matches. This system will be in operation on a first come, first serve basis depending on availability for the New Zealand and South Africa games. On day sales for those matches will be £10 and £5.
We want the Welsh team to be playing in front of good crowds and to reap the benefit of the fantastic support they get from Welsh supporters. Thats why we have struck this new deal which we believe offers great incentive and value to everyone.
Tickets in the £42 and £36 bands will be available for the games against the Springboks and All Blacks on Wednesday. That means fans will be able to get the best available seats at the Millennium Stadium to see Wales play four times for £100 or less (2 x £42 and 2 x £8) or £94 (2 x £39 and 2 x £8).
If a family of four wants to want to go to the Millennium Stadium to see Wales play TWICE in November it will cost them less than £50 (2 games x 2 adults x £8 = £32 + 2 games x 2 children x £4 = £16 Total = £48).
And as part of the deal the WRU have decided to put in place the policy of including the new-style, 88-page match programme in the price of a ticket for all matches in the Lloyds TSB Series.
This makes the WRU the first of the home nations to break with tradition as we continue to develop innovative ideas for the future, said Sergeant. The programmes for the games against South Africa and New Zealand will also include a free DVD of the history of matches between the nations, narrated by Ieuan Evans. This means that supporters will receive £20 of merchandise with the price of their ticket for these two matches.
Tickets for the Lloyds TSB Autumn International Series will be available from 1 September by calling 08705 582 582 or by logging on to www.wru.co.uk, www.millenniumstadium.co.uk or www.ticketmaster.co.uk
Tickets are also available over the counter at the Millennium Stadium Ticket Office in St Mary Street, Cardiff.
THE LLOYDS TSB AUTUMN INTERNATIONAL SERIES
SATURDAY, 6 NOVEMBER
WALES V SOUTH AFRICA (Millennium Stadium, kick-off 2.45pm)
FRIDAY, 12 NOVEMBER
WALES V ROMANIA (Millennium Stadium, kick-off 7.00pm)
SATURDAY, 20 NOVEMBER
WALES V NEW ZEALAND (Millennium Stadium, kick-off 5.30pm)
FRIDAY, 26 NOVEMBER
WALES V JAPAN (Millennium Stadium, kick-off 7.00pm)
Previous Autumn Series
2003 – Rugby World Cup; 2002 – Romania, Fiji, Canada, New Zealand; 2001 – Romania, Argentina, Tonga, Australia; 2000 – Samoa, USA, South Africa; 1999 – Rugby World Cup; 1998 – South Africa (Wembley), Argentina (Stradey Park); 1997 – Tonga (St Helen’s), New Zealand (Wembley); 1996 – Australia, South Africa;
1995 Fiji; 1994 – Italy, South Africa; 1993 – Japan, Canada; 1992 Australia.