The Kosciusko School Board decided to return to cashless ticketing for the upcoming winter sports of basketball and soccer. The district will evaluate numbers at the end of the winter sports season. If successful, the board may consider this a permanent option for all sports next year.
Attendees of Kosciusko sporting events are likely already familiar with GoFan, a company dedicated to providing schools with a cashless, virtual ticketing experience for athletics, performing arts, dances, camps, and booster clubs.
Last school year, Kosciusko exclusively implemented digital tickets for softball and baseball through GoFan, which Athletic Director Macey Wilbanks considered a success. While digital tickets were available during this year’s football season, they were not required, and cash was still accepted.
When athletics resume after Thanksgiving break, GoFan tickets will be utilized for the basketball and soccer seasons along with credit and debit cards, which were not available as an option last school year. Cash will not be accepted.
“It's a digital ticketing system that's been used by a lot of high schools around the state. It's pretty user friendly,” said Wilbanks. “We haven't had a whole lot of trouble with it, so we've been really excited to move forward with that.”
Wilbanks said QR codes will be posted at game entrances so attendees can scan to sign up. To sign up, users can visit gofan.co, create an account, and receive an email with a link to purchased tickets. Once at the game, spectators will show their virtual tickets at the gate. To view Kosciusko games specifically, visit gofan.co/app/school/MS4694.
Wilbanks said a big benefit to offering digital ticketing is the ability for fans to purchase season passes. On GoFan’s website, there is an option for an all-sports regular season pass for $100, excluding post-season games. A season pass for Whippets basketball (varsity and junior varsity) is $85. Junior-high basketball season passes cost $45. A season pass for soccer (boys and girls varsity and junior varsity) costs $50.
She said the system is beneficial because when a season pass holder gets their tickets validated at the gate, it will disappear for approximately 12 hours, so the pass cannot be traded off to someone else for use for the same event. The application will, however, allow people to transfer tickets.
“If a parent wants to buy a ticket for mom, dad and then two kids, but the two kids are maybe coming with their friends or something, they can purchase those tickets and then hit transfer, and email or text those two tickets to their kids’ phones,” said Wilbanks. “You know, a lot of them use that feature to send it to their elderly parents' phones or people who may not be as good with the apps.”
Fans can also purchase tickets for individual games. Kosciusko boys’ and girls’ soccer returns to action against Neshoba Central on Nov. 29 and Kosciusko boys’ and girls’ basketball faces the Amanda Elzy Panthers on Nov. 30.
“Those will be the two games where we will get it started,” said Wilbanks.
She said using digital tickets is great for staff because it’s safer and simpler for the district to receive money. According to district policy, cash collected on game nights must be taken to the bank and deposited the same night. Wilbanks said going digital cuts out that trip, which is safer.
“When it's 10 p.m. or 11 p.m. or later, especially me, a single female, and you have to take $5,000 to the bank by yourself at night in the dark, it's not always a comfortable feeling,” she said. “So it definitely will avoid that problem for us, as well. Plus, money is very germ-filled in the days of COVID, so it’s just a lot better on our staff to go that route.”
Kosciusko sports tickets can be bought on GoFan’s website or through its phone application, available in the App Store for iPhone users. There is no app available in the Google Play store for Android users, so tickets must be purchased through GoFan’s website.
