Ticketmaster Buys Tickethour

By incorporating sports specialist Tickethour, Ticketmaster will expand its presence to 25 countries across Europe and the Middle East.

Tickethour, which was founded by George Bolos (chairman) and Stefanos Kakarantzas (CEO) in 2006, distributes more than 8.5 million tickets for more than 65 clients per year. The company’s team will remain in place in Norway, the Netherlands, the UK, Cyprus, Greece and Belgium. Ticketmaster is already big in sports ticketing, servicing among others Premier League clubs, the Rugby Football Union, Wimbledon, NFL, NBA and NHL.

The acquisition of Tickethour will add Olympiacos Football Club and the Onassis Culture Centre in Greece, the Belgian Proleague and the Belgian Proximus League, and other major football teams such as the Viking Football Club in Norway.

Kakarantzas called the deal “our biggest achievement to date.” Mark Yovich, president Ticketmaster International, called it “a springboard to delivering events in new territories.”