Fans group sue FIFA over excessive World Cup ticket prices

The football fan advocacy group Football Supporters Europe (FSE) has filed a formal complaint with the European Commission against FIFA over what it calls “excessive ticket prices” for the 2026 World Cup

Together with the consumer rights group Euroconsumers, FSE argues that FIFA’s monopoly over ticket sales for the tournament, which runs from June 11 to July 19 across the US, Canada, and Mexico, has allowed the organisation to set inflated prices and impose opaque purchasing conditions on European fans.

“Euroconsumers and Football Supporters Europe (FSE) have filed a formal complaint with the European Commission against FIFA, alleging that the football body has abused its monopoly position to impose excessive ticket prices and opaque and unfair purchasing conditions and processes on European fans ahead of the 2026 World Cup,” FSE said in a statement.

The group pointed out that ticket prices for the final have skyrocketed compared with the 2022 Qatar World Cup. The cheapest openly available final tickets now start at $4,185—over seven times the price of the lowest 2022 final ticket. For context, UEFA Euro 2024 final tickets start at around €95 ($100).

FSE also highlighted that FIFA had projected an average ticket price of $1,408 in its bid documents, a figure that has been far exceeded. They further noted that initial promises for affordable tickets in North America, starting as low as $21, have not materialized; for instance, the Group J opener between Austria and Jordan at Levi’s Stadium in California sold its cheapest seats for $60, with most tickets for high-profile matches costing at least $200.

FIFA, meanwhile, has confirmed that nearly seven million tickets will be available for the expanded 48-team World Cup, with a maximum of four tickets per match and a total of 40 per person across the tournament’s 104 matches.

FSE maintains that the pricing and sale conditions would be unacceptable in any competitive market, calling attention to what it views as the unfair treatment of fans.