The FIFA World Cup is well underway, with quarterfinals going on this weekend, but for some fans, excitement ended in frustration.
The games started June 11 and end July 19. Those dates have been locked in for millions of World Cup fans around the world who've been waiting to watch the games for the last four years. For people living in the U.S., this tournament is especially exciting as we are a host nation, making some matches right next door for fans like Majda Praiz. Praiz is Croatian and has been living in Austin, Texas, with her husband for the last five years. When the Croatia vs England game was scheduled to take place at the Dallas Stadium, just three hours away, they knew it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
"This is the first time they'll have a World Cup so close to us; let's just splurge. Let's just go buy these tickets," Praiz told Kiplinger. Normally, Praiz and her husband would spend their summers going back to Croatia, but this year they wanted to spend their money on seeing Croatia play in the World Cup.
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Planning ahead to beat expensive ticket prices, Praiz and her husband bought two tickets last December from StubHub for $1,671. Though the tickets were expensive, they thought it was worth every penny because they would most likely never get the opportunity to see Croatia play in the U.S. again.
"Everything looked normal, except that we did not have seat numbers. When we reached out, StubHub said something about the seller, FIFA, I guess, not releasing the tickets yet, and that we would get them whenever they were released," Praiz said. She added that she "didn't really question it because we've used StubHub before for almost every event and never had any issues."
The weekend before the match, Praiz received an email stating the seller could not deliver the original tickets, and her immediate reaction was "panic."
"They offered to refund the money, but it's not about that. We're talking about a world-level event. This is not like a concert downtown. People travel from all over the world to get to the games, spending thousands on flights and hotels that airlines won't refund," said Praiz.
This is not like a concert downtown. People travel from all over the world to get to the games.
With only three days left before the match, ticket prices had skyrocketed. Facing the risk of missing the game entirely, Praiz and her husband decided to request a full refund from StubHub and bought official tickets directly through FIFA. The new official FIFA World Cup tickets cost them $2,500 for the exact same category level, nearly $1,000 more than their original resale purchase. Total expenses, including gas and food, came to roughly $3,000.
"What if we flew in for the game and had a hotel and stuff? That's extra thousands of dollars that no one is going to refund to you because you lost your tickets," said Praiz. "But the tickets are like $50,000 now. It's ridiculous. That's for the final, but still that's what worries me."
What to know about resale markets
Praiz and her husband aren't alone when it comes to losing or buying fake tickets before an event.
According to LegalShield, "35% of consumers have experienced grievances tied to event tickets." About a third of those consumers said they had a "verified" ticket rejected at the gate as fraudulent, while 68% reported buying so-called "ghost tickets," when the seller never had the tickets in the first place.
When buying from third-party platforms, it is important to understand how these secondhand marketplaces function. In addition to StubHub, you can buy tickets to events from resellers on sites including SeatGeak, Ticketmaster and Vivid Seats. On a platform like Ticketmaster, which also sells tickets directly from event organizers, there usually is an indication that the ticket you're looking at is a direct or resale purchase.
As a secondhand marketplace, StubHub does not own the tickets; it essentially just offers a place for people to buy and sell from each other. Its legal terms state: "While we may help facilitate the resolution of disputes between Buyer and Seller and provide the FanProtect Guarantee, we have no control over and do not guarantee the existence, quality, safety or legality of the Tickets."
That doesn't mean people can necessarily list anything on a secondhand marketplace; there are often guardrails in place to prevent fraud and fake sales. If sellers are found to have faked tickets, they're typically penalized by the marketplace. (StubHub's legal terms state if you list an "invalid ticket," "we will charge your payment method an amount equal to the greater of (i) 100% of the price of the ticket(s) sold or (ii) the full amount incurred by us to remedy the issue for the buyer.")
For buyers, another critical takeaway is understanding that fulfillment issues on secondary markets often stem from broader logistical and platform challenges rather than the tickets themselves. It's also important to remember that the vast majority of resold tickets typically are real, since the companies work to filter out bad apples.
When planning for high-demand events, you should look into the protection policies offered by the resale platform. For example, StubHub has FanProtect Guarantee, which is how Praiz got a full refund on her original purchase.
A StubHub spokesperson told Kiplinger: "StubHub was founded with the mission of making buying tickets easier and safer, and for 26 years we've helped millions of fans access the events they love. The World Cup is no exception, but even a single bad experience is deeply disappointing for fans and for us. That's why, in the rare instance that problems arise, our FanProtect Guarantee provides replacement tickets or a full refund — and why we are working tirelessly to resolve ticket transfer issues and get every fan into their match."
Ticket scams to look out for
Many high-demand events, like the World Cup or Taylor Swift's Eras Tour, have left fans sitting not in the stands, but outside the stadium with their "ghost tickets." Sometimes this is due to ticket transfer problems on legitimate secondhand markets, but there are also sophisticated scams to look out for with big events.
The FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center issued a public service announcement warning that cybercriminals are spoofing FIFA websites, using fake pages to steal personal information and sell bogus tickets and hospitality packages. As fans continue to look for bargain tickets to see the finals, know that the safest place to purchase real tickets is through FIFA's official website.
Though Croatia lost the match, Praiz described standing in the stadium and hearing the national anthem as an incredibly proud, emotional, once-in-a-lifetime experience. Even so, she was shaken by her experience with the tickets. She hopes that by sharing her story, other people will know it's a possibility.