European Fan Groups Complain Over FIFA's World Cup Ticket Prices

BRUSSELS, March 24 (Bernama-dpa) -- Lobby groups Euroconsumers and Football Supporters Europe have filed a complaint with the European Commission against world football governing body FIFA over high World Cup ticket prices, reported German Press Agency (dpa).

FIFA is abusing its monopoly position to impose inflated prices and unfair conditions on fans, a statement said on Tuesday ahead of the men's tournament in North America in June and July.

"By imposing opaque pricing, dark patterns to pressure buyers and exorbitant resale fees, FIFA is placing an unfair financial burden on millions of European fans," said Marco Scialdone, head of litigation at Euroconsumers. 

"We are calling on the European Commission to intervene immediately with interim measures to halt these exploitative practices before the 2026 tournament begins."

A Commission spokeswoman confirmed that the complaint had been received.

It will now be examined under the usual procedures despite the tournament happening in the United States (US), Canada and Mexico, as well as FIFA being based outside the European Union (EU) in Switzerland.

If the review finds a breach of competition law, the Commission can ask those concerned – in this case FIFA – to end the infringement and can also set specific requirements. There is no deadline for the review.

Prices have risen sharply compared with the previous men's World Cup in Qatar.

Prices for the final start at over US$4,000, with the groups saying that this is more than seven times the cost of the cheapest 2022 World Cup final ticket.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino has defended the prices, saying the revenue generated would benefit football.

After continuous criticism, the world governing body introduced a special allocation of tickets for US$60 in mid-December 2025. However, the cheaper prices apply only to a small number of tickets.

Despite the prices, interest in World Cup tickets remains high.

In the most recent sales phase, FIFA said there had been more than half a billion ticket requests.

"FIFA point to their unconfirmed sales figures as validation of their unfair ticket practices, while the reality is they leave loyal fans with no other choice – pay up or lose out," said Ronan Evain, executive director at Football Supporters Europe. 

-- BERNAMA-dpa