Waiting for FIFA World Cup prices to come down? 'Don't hold your breath'

Caption

Andre Dickens stands with FIFA President Gianni Infantino at a Mercedes-Benz event on March 14, 2025

Credit: Amanda Andrews / GPB News

Soccer fans last week lodged a formal complaint with the European Commission against FIFA over ticket prices for the World Cup taking place in North America this summer.

Two European groups, Football Supporters Europe and Euroconsumers, allege soccer’s world governing body has abused its position to impose excessive prices.

Atlanta will host eight games in the tournament beginning in June.

On Tuesday, soccer fans attending an international friendly in Atlanta — USA vs. Portugal — shared their thoughts about whether they were planning to attend the World Cup.

"As much as I love soccer games, I got other things in life and sometimes I just can't fit it in the budget," said Eric Seyoum of Atlanta.

"All the tickets are overpriced," said Alan dos Ramos from Tampa, Fla. "I think that's a problem right now with the World Cup."

"We're still going to do it but we're going to do it on the second-hand market," said Dave Mullican of Lancaster, Pa.

For more on complaints over World Cup ticket prices, GPB's Orlando Montoya spoke with Derek Howard, a trial attorney and sports law professor at the University of San Francisco School of Law.

Orlando Montoya: FIFA advertised $60 tickets. What happened to those?

Derek Howard: Well, that's a very good question, and that's part of the reason why people are upset. When they initially pitched for this World Cup to be awarded to the United States, FIFA promised that the tickets would be around $60 and affordable for all the normal, everyday, passionate soccer fans around the world. So, what has happened instead is a massive price-gouging scheme, where FIFA is set to receive about $11 billion in revenue. And unfortunately, absent legal action, it looks like nobody's going to be able to stop them. And as a result, tickets are going to cost from an average of about $5,000 to $7,000 per match — and increasing as the matches progress.

Montoya: Why are ticket prices significantly higher than previous tournaments in 2018 and 2022?

Howard: Well, that's a very good question. And the reason is that there is no fox watching the chicken coop. The FIFA organization has unilaterally set these prices, and being in a monopoly position, they are essentially challenging anybody to try and stop them. And the second part of the answer is that FIFA and the head, Mr. Infantino, have a very close relationship with the President of the United States. And as a result, there's no political will to challenge FIFA.

Montoya: What is the impact of things like dynamic pricing and resale platforms?

Howard: Dynamic pricing is a very interesting and ever-changing concept. The idea behind it is to collect fair prices, but taking into the interest of the consumer. Unfortunately, in these AI-driven days, there are no protections for consumers with dynamic pricing. Rather, because FIFA has all the relevant information that leads into pricing decisions, they have tilted the pricing scale completely in their favor so they can collect the highest prices rather than fair prices for consumers.

Montoya: And resale platforms?

Howard: FIFA has used a number of tickets to drive the resale market towards its own website. And they've also initiated a campaign to frighten consumers that if they go to alternative platforms that we're all familiar with, for example, for concerts and whatnot, they won't get the best tickets or they may even be defrauded. As a result, consumers are afraid to use these alternative platforms — again, to the benefit of FIFA.

Orlando Montoya: Soccer fans might complain, but do they have any leverage on prices?

Howard: Well, it depends, first off, on whether or not you're talking about the European and international fans or the United States fans. The European fans are facing exorbitant costs. For example, if you're a follower of England, you would have to pay about $10,000 just to get out of the first round watching your team that you support. The United States fans do have more access to the U.S. legal system. And it's either going to have to come from private attorney generals who are not politically beholden to the governing party right now, or private action from attorneys seeking to utilize the consumer statutes that are available in the United States.

Montoya: Do cities and states have any leverage? And what would the consequences be if they actually used it?

Howard: Well, the cities and states are in a very difficult spot because, unfortunately, they're shouldering part of the cost of putting on this event, which is being described as 100 Super Bowls in a row. They are desperate for federal funding, and they have recently gotten a small amount of $625 million through FEMA funding. But even with that funding, the local municipalities and states are absorbing millions of dollars in cost to put on pregame and game events with all the things that you would expect, like security, police and fire over time, et cetera. So the city's only remedy, again, is to file lawsuits to protect the interests of their taxpayers.

Montoya: Is there an equitable way to sell World Cup tickets?

Howard: There is. The first thing that FIFA can do is roll back the prices of the remaining tickets that have not yet been purchased due to their exorbitant rates. Secondly, they can make refunds. And third, they change their pricing structure on their own FIFA resale site and cap the prices that can be charged for a ticket.

Montoya: And finally, what's your best advice for fans who want to watch the World Cup affordably?

Howard: Be ready to organize a watch party. Don't hold your breath that the ticket prices are gonna come down, and just try and make the best of a bad situation.