Lazio Court Upholds €12.24 Million Viagogo Resale Fine

By Amara Osei

Italy’s Lazio Regional Administrative Court (TAR Lazio) upheld a €12.24 million ($14 million) fine against Viagogo on October 26 in decision No. 16831/2026, rejecting the company’s challenge to 68 violations.

The ruling leaves in place the penalty imposed under AGCOM Decision 75/23/CONS in March 2023. AGCOM, Italy’s communications regulator, had found 68 separate breaches of the country’s restrictions on unauthorized commercial ticket resale.

That enforcement action covered listings for dozens of concerts and live entertainment events in 2022, including performances by Måneskin, Blanco and Renato Zero, and Cirque du Soleil events. Advertised prices reached 10 times the original face value for some tickets.

What happened to Viagogo’s intermediary defense?

The central dispute was whether Viagogo could avoid liability for listings and transactions facilitated through its marketplace by relying on its status as a hosting service connecting third-party buyers and sellers. The court rejected that defense. It held that the intermediary structure of the business did not, by itself, shield the company from enforcement under Italy’s resale framework.

The court also rejected Viagogo’s objections to how regulators calculated the penalty. AGCOM could treat violations associated with individual events separately, instead of consolidating them into a single offense. Those 68 violations produced the €12.24 million aggregate fine.

The hosting defense failed. The label did not settle liability.

Takeaway: An online marketplace cannot rely on intermediary status alone to avoid an Italian resale fine.

What does the ruling mean for ticketing platforms?

The immediate consequence is limited but concrete: the 2023 financial penalty remains in place after Viagogo’s unsuccessful challenge. For marketplaces operating across European jurisdictions, the decision shows that national resale restrictions can apply even when a platform describes itself primarily as an intermediary facilitating third-party transactions.

It remains unestablished whether Viagogo will pursue a further appeal or what additional legal avenues remain available. Nor does the judgment independently establish that Italy’s resale restrictions produce lower consumer prices or more competitive ticket distribution.

Practical takeaway: The intermediary label alone offers no protection from enforcement in Italy.

Can resale limits guarantee lower ticket prices?

Italy has maintained an unusually restrictive regulatory environment for commercial ticket resale, limiting unauthorized secondary-market activity while preserving certain exceptions for occasional transactions by individual consumers. The framework seeks to discourage speculative resale and protect consumers from inflated ticket prices.

Supporters of the regime say these limits can reduce speculative buying and prevent substantial markups for high-demand events. The competing concern is that restrictions on independent resale platforms can reduce competition and concentrate ticket distribution within channels authorized by event organizers and primary ticketing operators.

Both outcomes can coexist. A regulatory system may curb some speculative resale while reducing the number of competing platforms available to consumers.

Several factors, not resale restrictions alone, affect the prices buyers ultimately encounter:

• Original ticket prices and premium inventory shape important baselines for buyers.
• Dynamic pricing also influences the amounts charged for particular tickets.
• Consumers’ ability to resell unwanted tickets affects secondary-market supply.

The judgment does not establish that Italy’s restrictions produce cheaper tickets or more competitive distribution. It resolves Viagogo’s challenge to this enforcement action, not the broader economic case.

Takeaway: The fine stands, but the ruling does not prove that resale limits lower ticket prices.

Is this the same as the earlier €23.5 million penalty?

No. The upheld penalty concerns a March 2023 enforcement proceeding involving 2022 ticket listings. Italian regulators imposed a separate €23.5 million penalty, reported in June 2022 and then described as approximately $24 million, over alleged violations of Italy’s restrictions on unauthorized ticket resale.

That earlier action raised similar questions about independent secondary marketplaces and the extent to which Italian rules restrict competition outside authorized ticket-distribution channels. The two proceedings should not be confused.

Viagogo has also pursued legal challenges involving the application of Italian ticketing restrictions and European Union law. Those disputes reflect a longer-running argument over marketplace obligations and national authorities’ ability to regulate cross-border ticket resale services.

The October 26 judgment affirms Italy’s authority to enforce its resale restrictions against Viagogo under the circumstances the court examined. Whether Viagogo will pursue further appeal has not been established.

Takeaway: One penalty stands, and the broader competition debate remains open.