Soccer fans have filed a formal complaint with the European Commission against FIFA. world cup ticket prices.
Football Supporters Europe (FSE) said on Tuesday it had teamed up with consumer group Euroconsumers to claim that soccer’s world governing body had abused its position to charge excessive prices.
The FSE accused FIFA of “grave betrayal” in December. released to the general public Prices range from $140 for the cheapest group match to $8,680 for the final match. The cheapest ticket to the final is $4,185, but all prices are subject to change as FIFA is using dynamic pricing for the first time at a World Cup co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.
“FIFA has a monopoly on ticket sales for the 2026 World Cup and is using that power to impose conditions on fans that would never be acceptable in a competitive market,” FSE and Euroconsumers said in a joint statement.
In December, following backlash from fans, FIFA lowers some ticket prices Each round leading up to the finals will amount to $60, which teams can distribute to their most loyal fans.
Besides the exorbitant prices, the FSE claimed that FIFA had deployed pressure selling tactics and criticized the transparency of the process.
They are requesting that prices be frozen for the next sale in April and that dynamic pricing be discontinued when selling to European fans.
“Dynamic pricing turns fan loyalty into a bidding war, increases costs with no added value and excludes many supporters,” said Els Bruggemann, head of policy enforcement at Euroconsumers.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino said in January that demand for tickets was “1000 years of World Cups at once”. He said all 104 World Cup matches would be sold out, meaning “tickets will probably be resold at even higher prices”.
The FSE has also been critical of FIFA’s official resale platform, where tickets are sold well above face value and the governing body takes 30% of the sale price.
“While FIFA has cited unconfirmed sales numbers as evidence of unfair ticketing practices, the reality is that loyal fans are left with a choice: pay or lose,” said Ronan Evine, executive director of the FSE.
FIFA told The Associated Press it had not formally received the complaint. As a non-profit organization, it added that profits from the World Cup were reinvested into the growth of football.
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James Robson is https://x.com/James Saran Robson
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AP Soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
