The 2012 Olympics were being marketed as the first-ever “cashless” games by Visa, one of the event’s most generous sponsors. But a technical error at Wembley Stadium forced merchants to temporarily abandon that initiative, according to Finextra.
Wembley’s card terminals failed during the soccer match between Great Britain and the United Arab Emirates, forcing a reported 80,000 fans to use cash, the report says. Visa acknowledged the error through an official statement and said it was working to resolve the issue.
Visa reduced the number of ATMs on the Olympic grounds prior to the event’s launch, and partnered with Samsung to distribute mobile payment-equipped smartphones to a select number of influential attendees at the games.
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