Euroconsumers and Football Supporters Europe (FSE) have formally filed a complaint with the European Commission against FIFA, accusing it of exploiting its monopoly on ticket sales for the 2026 World Cup.
The complaint claims FIFA has imposed excessive ticket prices, opaque purchasing conditions, and unfair sales practices that disadvantage European fans.
‘Absolute monopoly’
“Football is a universal passion, but FIFA is treating it like a private luxury by exploiting its absolute monopoly over World Cup ticketing,” commented Marco Scialdone, head of litigation at Euroconsumers. “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.
“We are calling on the European Commission to intervene immediately with interim measures to halt these exploitative practices before the 2026 tournament begins.”
According to Euroconsumers and FSE, this year’s final tickets start at $4,185 – more than seven times higher than the cheapest tickets for the 2022 World Cup final and far above FIFA’s own projections of $1,408. Fans were also misled by so-called $60 group-stage tickets, which were scarce and effectively unavailable, a practice the organisations say constitutes illegal ‘bait’ advertising under EU consumer law.
Dynamic pricing has further inflated costs, with prices rising unpredictably by up to 25% between sales phases.
‘Exploitative ticketing’
“For several months now we have urged FIFA to do right by fans and reconsider its aggressive and exploitative ticketing policies,” added Ronan Evain, executive director at Football Supporters Europe. “FIFA’s failure to engage in meaningful consultation with stakeholders yet again has left us with no option but to join forces with Euroconsumers in filing this complaint with the European Commission.
“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.”
Euroconsumers has previously worked with Football Supporters Europe, Live DMA and Reset Network to call for a ban on dynamic pricing for sporting events, which turns “fans’ loyalty into a bidding war, inflates costs without added value, and locks out many supporters,” Els Bruggeman, head of policy and enforcement at Euroconsumers. Read more here and here.
