New York — FIFA is under new scrutiny due to its rise World Cup Ticket prices and sales tactics that fans say left them with worse deals than they wanted.
Prosecutors in New York and New Jersey, which host eight World Cup matches including the final, announced on Tuesday that they were investigating whether FIFA’s ticketing practices violated consumer protection laws.
They have sent subpoenas to soccer’s world governing body demanding information on a range of ticketing issues, including FIFA’s use of “variable pricing” models that have led to higher ticket prices for most matches and the redrawing of stadium maps that fans say has moved their seats further away from the stadium.
Prosecutors, working with New York City’s Department of Consumer and Labor Protection, said they are primarily focused on ticketing practices for games at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
“New Yorkers have been waiting for years for the World Cup to come to their backyard, and they deserve a fair shot at affordable tickets,” New York Attorney General Letitia James said. “No one should be manipulated into paying exorbitant prices for seats, and fans should be able to trust that the tickets they buy will be the ones they get.”
New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport accused FIFA of turning the process of purchasing a World Cup ticket “into a challenge of confusion, false scarcity and impossibly high prices.” She said it was an honor for New Jersey to host the World Cup, “but the event is not an invitation to exploit our residents and visitors.”
FIFA declined to comment.
The World Cup begins on June 11 with matches in Mexico City and Guadalajara, Mexico. The first match at the 82,000-seat MetLife Stadium – which has been temporarily renamed New York New Jersey Stadium for the event – pits Brazil against Morocco on June 13.
Some seats will be allocated for the final match on July 19 Nearly $33,000.
Last week, New York City Mayor Zahran Mamdani It announced that 1,000 tickets — about 150 for each game at MetLife Stadium, excluding the final game — would be available to city residents via a lottery system at a cost of $50 each.
FIFA has already done some Tickets $60 Available for each match, and distributed through the national federations of the teams participating in the matches.