BTS in Mexico: Government Initiates Fine Against Ticketmaster Over Sales Controversy

Mexico’s Consumer Protection Agency (Profeco) announced Monday (Feb. 2) that it has initiated proceedings to impose a fine of more than 5 million pesos (approximately $277,800) on Ticketmaster México for alleged legal violations during the sale of tickets for the three concerts that K-pop superband BTS will hold this spring at the GNP Seguros Stadium.

“The provider company has 10 business days to submit evidence and respond. This deadline concludes on Feb. 12,” Iván Escalante, head of Profeco, said during the morning presidential conference. He added that the ticketing company was notified about the proceedings on Wednesday (Jan. 28) and highlighted that three resale platforms — Viagogo, TopHop and Hello Ticket, based in the U.S., Switzerland and Spain, respectively — were also urged to comply with the country’s laws and avoid unfair practices that negatively affect Mexican consumers.

If the companies fail to respect Mexican laws, Escalante warned, Profeco will initiate legal and administrative actions, including procedures for legal violations and “possible operational restrictions” on these platforms in Mexico.

Billboard Español sent a request for comment to Ticketmaster México, but did not receive an immediate response.

The announcement of a possible fine against Ticketmaster México comes nearly two weeks after Profeco urged the ticketing company and promoter Ocesa to issue clarifications regarding ticket prices, the venue map and the number of tickets allocated to each stage of the sale. This followed the receipt of more than 4,700 requests from members of ARMY, as BTS fans are known, demanding transparency and fairness in the ticket sales process.

In a statement shared with Billboard Español last week, Ticketmaster México said that ticket sales for BTS experienced “unprecedented demand,” with more than 2.1 million users accessing the platform in search of tickets, and a peak of 1.1 million people in the virtual queue during presales and general sales. Ticketmaster México clarified that it does not use dynamic pricing or algorithms that modify ticket prices during sales, and that “prices were established by the artist, their team, and promoter according to the location of each section, and remained unchanged throughout the presale and sale process.”

The historic demand for tickets for BTS’ concerts scheduled for May 7, 9 and 10 at the GNP Seguros Stadium in Mexico City led Mexico’s president, Claudia Sheinbaum, to send a diplomatic note to South Korean President Lee Jae-myung, requesting his intervention to have the group hold more concerts in Mexico after tickets for the three shows sold out in less than an hour.

The Mexican president said Monday that she has already received a response from the South Korean government: “The president of Korea replied to me, thanking Mexicans for their interest in this musical group, expressing his gratitude for the letter, and informing me that he has already contacted BTS’s production company,” Sheinbaum shared. “Hopefully, there will be good news.”