A BELFAST man has hit out at UEFA after forking out £2,000 for Euro 2016 tickets only to be told his allocation is for the knock-out stages - and only if the Republic qualify.
Tony Coleman, who is hoping to travel to the tournament in France with three of his friends, has booked flights and a camper van to take in the competition, but fears he is unlikely to make it to any games.
Mr Coleman said he is furious that UEFA has been unable to offer him any tickets for the Republic's three group games to be played in June, but have gone ahead and taken almost €2,500 to reserve tickets for the knock-out stages.
The money will be refunded if the Republic does not make the knock-out stages.
Mr Coleman said: "UEFA have an interest free loan of €2,415 from me here. When I made the application I thought it deducted it if and when the Republic qualified. I thought they would deduct it for the three group games, which I didn't get.
"The tickets for the group games are on sale across the internet from touts. I have seen prices of £400 for the Sweden game.
"I have brought this to the attention of UEFA and the portal is closing this evening (March 31st). They have dismissed me and I can't apply for any more tickets.
Mr Coleman added: "We are due to pick up a camper van in Barcelona and we have had to pay for flights. That stuff is all non-refundable."
The UEFA website states that applicants credit cards will be "charged automatically and immediately" for tickets at the moment of application.
In response to queries from Mr Coleman, a UEFA spokesman said: "We understand the situation, however we have allocated all the tickets reserved for the supporters during the last random draws.
"We have specific dedicated teams and lawyers screening the internet for supporters breaching the terms and conditions and trying to resell their tickets.
The UEFA spokesman added: "Any party trying to enter the stadium with these kind of tickets will face potential arrest."
UEFA also said a technical block, which prevented Mr Coleman from purchasing tickets from the group games as he reached the payment stage, was an "unusual error."
The spokesman said: "The error is unusual and can be caused by many factors outside of our control.
"During the ticket request process, it is advised on the portal that the refund is guaranteed in case your team does not qualify."
The row comes just a month after a furore over the original allocation process for Northern Ireland fans.
Some fans were left fuming after a loyalty scheme apparently failed to prioritise those who had attended past games.
