"First come, first served" is the order of the day when the fourth 2006 FIFA World Cup™ ticket sales phase opens on 15 February at midday (Central European Time). As in the three preceding sales periods, the retail platform is provided by official website www.FIFAworldcup.com. Ticket supplies will be frequently updated through to the end of the phase on 15 April 2006. The 'new' tickets result from the process of finalising seating plans, and from tickets offered for resale after return for non-payment or other reasons.

"We have one significant difference compared to previous sales phases, the probability of more tickets becoming available later in the phase than at the beginning. Our current priority is the conditional ticket programme. Fans are advised to visit www.FIFAworldcup.com frequently, as the offer will be continuously updated,“ commented OC senior vice-president Horst R. Schmidt.

By the end of February, some 30,000 tickets will have been allocated to participants in the conditional ticket programme. At the weekend, the 2006 FIFA World Cup™ Ticketing Center passed this news in writing to the 61,000 applicants who took out options on a total of 140,000 match tickets between 2 and 30 November 2005. "It is a pleasure to fulfil our pledge to conditional ticket programme participants of a realistic, or indeed an excellent chance, of receiving a match ticket. Based on the current situation, we expect to allocate a further, significant block of tickets to the conditional ticket programme,“ Schmidt predicted.