More than seven million tickets for the Olympics have been sold:Locog

27 Jun 2012

The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (Locog) and chairman Sebastian Coe face a race against time to sell the remaining two million tickets with a month to go until the opening ceremony.

While more than seven million tickets for the Olympics have been sold, there remains 20 per cent for sale.

Locog said that momentum is gathering and one million tickets have been sold in the last month alone.

One of the biggest problems, however, is that tickets for football matches – which were available to purchase later than other events – are proving hard to shift.

Locog insisted that excluding the football, some 90 per cent of all tickets had been sold. Further, tens of thousands more contingency tickets have yet to have been made available.

Lord Coe remained bullish on Wednesday, insisting that the London 2012 organisers will have to work day and night until the very start of the Olympics to make sure everything is right for the Games.

He said they were on course for "an amazing summer" and called on everyone in the country, wherever they live, to become involved in the Olympics.

"With a month to go, we are ready, and on track," Lord Coe said. "We aren't complacent – every day and every hour is as vital to us as it is to the athletes in this final countdown."This summer will generate some awe-inspiring moments and we hope to create memories that will last a lifetime, so my message is – be part of it.

"As athletes around the country and around the world are qualifying and being selected for the Games we want the whole country to prepare for an amazing summer.

"From the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations which continue, to the Torch Relay, the London 2012 Festival and the sporting events at the Games, we want everyone to join in."

Lord Coe urged people to snap up the remaining tickets and continued: "There are hundreds of ways to be part of the Games, wherever you live.

"From buying a ticket, and there are still some great tickets for both Games and to events in the London 2012 Festival, to watching the sporting events at Live Sites, cheering the Olympic flame as it continues its amazing journey around the country, or celebrating with family and friends at a 'Super Saturday' barbecue during the Games."