Of the approximately 70 000 tickets that were available for the first four days of the New Years Test match against England at Newlands in Cape Town only about 9 000 were available for purchase by ordinary fans.

Earlier this week The Common Sense reported that tickets that went on sale for the highly anticipated three-Test series between England and South Africa had, for the match at Newlands, been sold out within minutes of going on sale. Tickets for the Grandstand at Centurion, which will be hosting the Test match which starts on Boxing Day, were also sold out rapidly.

According to Cricinfo, a cricket news site, only 13% of the tickets at Newlands were made available to the general public. The breakdown of the rest of the tickets was as follows: International and domestic travel packages – 39%; Complimentary tickets allocated to Cricket South Africa (CSA), the game’s governing body in South Africa, and member sponsors, stakeholders, match officials, visiting and home teams, media, marketing, and service allocations – 19%; General hospitality and member complimentary tickets – 21%; Season ticket holders – 2%; Restricted areas – 3%; Wheelchair users and assistants – 1%; Sight-screen restricted seating – 1%; and Reserved backup allocations – 1%.

Given that Newlands currently has a capacity of about 17 000 (it is usually 20 000 but is currently lower because of renovations and building work) that means for the first four days of the Test match only about 9 000 of the 70 000 that were on sale were available for ordinary fans. While Test matches are normally scheduled for five days, Test matches often do not last to the fifth day so tickets for that day are often not sold ahead of time.

In 2025 CSA also started a joint venture with Tourvest, a tourism company, South Africa Cricket Travel. The aim of this is allegedly to boost cricket tourism in South Africa but may be seen by some as a money grab.

The Common Sense contacted South Africa Cricket Travel to determine whether tickets for Newlands are available through the company. They would be available but only as part of a full accommodation package. To secure a ticket for the first day of the Test match at Newlands on 3 January 2027 one would have to buy a full package, which includes two nights accommodation at a hotel in Cape Town. Per person sharing the cost is R11 840. This only includes the match ticket for one day, two nights’ accommodation, and breakfast.

Tickets for Newlands have also been seen on resale sites, with the cheapest tickets costing over R4 000.

In a statement released yesterday CSA said it "acknowledges the frustration experienced by fans who were unable to secure tickets for the upcoming New Year’s Test." It went on to say that it recognised "that its communication around ticket availability did not provide the clarity supporters expected and we apologise for the confusion this created".

More tickets would be released at a later date CSA said, and information around these tickets would be "shared timeously".

On the issue of tickets being available at highly inflated prices CSA said that it "maintains a strict prohibition on ticket scalping and unauthorised resale. Fans are urged not to buy tickets from unauthorised resellers to avoid being denied entry into the stadium".