Sports fans who want to use a credit or debit card to buy tickets for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games will be restricted to using a Visa card, due to an exclusive deal between the Olympic organisers and the credit card payment system.

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There are 91 million Visa cardholders in the UK compared to 40 million Mastercard and 4 million Amex cardholders, meaning that some potential buyers will struggle to obtain tickets. The deal also means they will not be able to withdraw cash from ATMs or make purchases at any Olympic sites unless they have cash: the ATMs and payment terminals are also restricted to Visa cards. Jill Insley, The Guardian.

This isn’t sponsorship it’s bribery – which idiot thought it was a good idea?