Fifa charging up to £8,333 on open market for World Cup final tickets

Fifa are charging up to $11,000 (£8,333) for tickets to the World Cup final, as the start of the next phase of tickets sales revealed how the price of in-demand seats has significantly increased. In December, Fifa were accused of “betrayal” after the cheapest tickets for the World Cup final were revealed to be £3,119 in the “supporter value tier”. The most expensive tickets, in the top category, were set at £6,615. These were made available to supporters of the qualified nations, or Participating Member Associations (PMAs). On Wednesday, following the conclusion of the World Cup play-offs and the completion of the 48-team draw, Fifa opened the “last-minute sales phase”. The Associated Press and BBC reported that the category three price for the World Cup final, or the cheapest available tickets, had increased to £4,386 on the open market. The process was also hit by a technical glitch, with many games not available once the “last-minute sales phase” had opened, the Associated Press reported. Fans looking to access Fifa’s ticketing website also experienced long queues to get in, while some supporters looking to get through to the open market sales were instead redirected to the “PMA late qualifier supporters sales phase”. At the time, Fifa confirmed the ticketing system was not working properly. Fifa also said not all remaining tickets were on sale, but that additional tickets would be released on a rolling basis.Tickets that hit the market on general sale will be subject to dynamic pricing, making attending in-demand games and following the most popular teams more expensive, while Fifa will also operate its own resale market that allows sellers to charge many times above face value for games in the United States and Canada, but not Mexico, and also take 30 per cent of the sell-on price.In December, after it was reported that England fans would face a £5,000 bill on match tickets alone if they wanted to follow their team through to a World Cup final, Fifa announced that some $60 (£45) tickets would be made available to each participating national federation for their most loyal supporters, an amount likely to be 400-700 per team for each match, or 10 per cent. Football Supporters Europe (FSE) and Euroconsumers have lodged a formal complaint with the European Commission, citing Fifa’s "aggressive and exploitative ticketing policies" and its adoption of dynamic pricing.A Fifa statement on ticket prices previously said: “The pricing model adopted for Fifa World Cup 26 reflects the existing market practice for major entertainment and sporting events within our hosts on a daily basis, soccer included.“This is also a reflection of the treatment of the secondary market for tickets, which has a distinct legal treatment than in many other parts of the world. We are focused on ensuring fair access to our game for existing but also prospective fans.”