Ahead of the World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada, many fans are angry. The reason: high prices and non-transparent allocation of tickets by FIFA. Now several American states are conducting investigations
The excitement for the FIFA World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico is high, but it has now been overshadowed by the dissatisfaction of many fans over excessive ticket prices and non-transparent sales. The attorneys general of the states of New York and New Jersey are now conducting investigations into the world soccer organization FIFA. Fans are being forced to pay “excessively high prices” for tickets, said New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport. She accuses FIFA of turning ticket sales into a “maze of confusion, artificial shortages and unrealistically high prices.”
New York State Attorney General Letitia James criticizes: “Fans should get the tickets they bought.” California is also investigating allegations of excessive ticket prices for the UN.
What is it about? For weeks, FIFA’s pricing policy for the World Cup has caused outrage. The cheapest tickets for the group stage, which cost between 300 and 600 US dollars, sold out quickly. Meanwhile, prices for these tickets exceed 1,000 dollars. The fan organization Football Supporters Europe (FSE) speaks of “usury” prices. An additional problem is dynamic pricing, where costs increase or decrease depending on demand, which particularly angers many fans.
Ticket allocation could backfire on FIFA. At first, the soccer organization sold tickets in different categories, but without assigned seats. As demand grew, new categories were introduced. Those who already had a ticket were then moved to less attractive categories. FIFA said in April, following a report by the New York Times, that the category plans presented were only intended to help fans get an idea of where their seats might be in the stadium. Despite all the debate about different price categories, FIFA has long been the target of criticism for its high ticket prices.
“We are honored to host the World Cup, but this event is not an invitation to take advantage of residents and visitors,” Davenport said. “New Yorkers have waited years for the World Cup to be held in their backyard and deserve a fair chance at affordable tickets,” said New York State Attorney Letitia James. The World Cup takes place from June 11 to July 19 in the United States, Mexico and Canada. (DW)