Last week, Harry Styles announced his first ever tour as a solo artist. The former One Directioner is heading out on the road in September in support of his self-titled debut album, playing shows across North America and Europe before coming our way to perform in Sydney and Melbourne in November.

It’s being billed as an ‘intimate’ world tour, and for good reason: instead of playing arenas or stadiums (that he could easily have filled) the singer has opted to play small theatres. He’s booked the Enmore Theatre in Sydney and the Forum in Melbourne, which have capacities of 2200 and 1500 respectively.

So in total, only 3700 Australians will get to see the pop superstar in action. Which is… not a lot, frankly.

By comparison, Bruno Mars will play to about 76,820 people on his just-announced Australian tour next March, performing in venues like Melbourne’s Rod Laver Arena and Sydney’s Qudos Bank Arena.

Hell, Justin Bieber entertained more than 70,000 people at a single show when he was in Sydney at ANZ Stadium.

Of course, Styles isn’t the first big artist to aim small: Coldplay played the Enmore in 2014, and the Rolling Stones did a show there way back in 2003. Given the Britpop and rock angle of his single ‘Sign Of The Times’, it’s clear that Styles is determined to break free of the One Direction mould — a strategy that doesn’t align with playing stadiums.

So What’s The Issue?

With ridiculously limited numbers, tickets for these shows will be hot property — which means they’re going to be a very attractive prospect for scalpers. In anticipation, promoter Frontier Touring have put some seriously strict measures in place to deter opportunists from snapping up tickets in bulk.

For instance: you’ll only be able to purchase two tickets per transaction, and you’ll need to have your credit card and valid ID on hand at the venue so they can cross check it with the purchase list — meaning that even if the person who bought your tickets isn’t actually attending the show, they still need to check in to the venue with you. Physical tickets won’t be issued until October for Sydney, and there will be no physical tickets at all for Melbourne.

The scalpers might have a hard time, but so too will the rest of us. Tens of thousands of Harry Styles fans will be logging on this Friday at 5pm to compete for essentially a handful of tickets. If you thought Splendour was a fight against the odds, you haven’t seen anything yet.

Frontier Touring have told Music Junkee there are “no brand deals or media deals” for either of Styles’ Australian shows, meaning that no tickets are being held back for competition winners or promotional deals.

Even so, with less than 4000 spots available, getting to see Styles in action will be a matter of luck (and fast fingers). If you’re game, head to the Frontier Touring website for more info.