Several soccer fans who paid thousands of dollars for World Cup tickets are frustrated with FIFA’s ticketing process, prompting complaints to NBC Los Angeles and scrutiny from state attorneys general. Long Beach resident Joe Mello said he bought four tickets to the Belgium-Iran match at SoFi Stadium, paying $1,600. However, only one ticket initially appeared in his FIFA app, leaving him worried as the Father’s Day game approached.
Local Fans Affected
Mello said FIFA eventually fixed the problem after he spent about a week calling and emailing the organization. He believes the situation could have become a disaster at the stadium had he not been persistent. Another fan, Jose Flores from Downey, said he and his wife spent $3,800 on two tickets to Los Angeles’ first World Cup match, the United States against Paraguay. Flores said they purchased Category 2 tickets but were assigned seats near the top of the venue, which was not what they expected.
Flores said he complained to FIFA but was told his seats would not be reassigned. He found it frustrating when he later saw Category 2 tickets closer to the field listed on FIFA’s website for less than he paid. NBC Los Angeles contacted FIFA multiple times for comment but did not receive a response.
State Attorneys General Investigate
Derek Howard, a longtime trial attorney who teaches sports law at the University of San Francisco, said ticketholders who believe they were misled could consult a consumer attorney. However, he noted that legal action may not move quickly enough to get fans different seats before match day. Howard recommended that fans with ticketing issues keep contacting FIFA and document their efforts.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office said he recently sent FIFA a letter requesting detailed information about its ticketing practices. In the letter, Bonta said California provides legal protections for consumers and has strict prohibitions on marketing practices that are likely to mislead them. The attorneys general of New York and New Jersey have also announced a formal investigation into FIFA’s ticketing practices.
Original reporting: NBC4 Los Angeles — read the source article.
