FIFA have failed to pay supporters who sold World Cup tickets through their official resale marketplace.
The resale platform offers those who have purchased tickets but can no longer attend the opportunity to shift their tickets. FIFA say the ‘initiative is designed to protect supporters from invalid or unauthorised resale’.
FIFA charge both the buyer and seller for use of the platform, taking a 30 per cent cut of any sale.
After a sale has been processed, FIFA’s terms and conditions state that sellers should receive payment within 60 days of a ticket being sold on the platform.
But documents seen by Daily Mail Sport suggest there have been instances where reimbursements were not made within the specified timeframe.
In one case, a supporter sold tickets on April 2 for Norway’s match against Iraq in Foxborough for approximately £1,250 through FIFA’s official resale platform.
Despite the payment deadline passing on June 1, the individual has yet to receive the funds and has requested an update from FIFA.
FIFA confirmed the individual’s payment details were received on May 12, but no payment has been made. Daily Mail Sport have contacted FIFA for comment.
Some fans at the 2026 World Cup are waiting to be reimbursed from ticket resales by FIFA
On their website, FIFA’s terms and conditions state: ‘If you list your FIFA World Cup 26™ ticket on the FIFA Resale/Exchange Marketplace and it is successfully resold/ exchanged, you will receive the resale/exchange price minus the resale/exchange fee and any applicable taxes or deductions.
‘Payment will be made within 60 calendar days from the date the ticket is purchased by the new buyer or such shorter period as required by applicable law, provided you have met all terms and submitted the required payment information.
‘For more information please refer to Clause 9.4 of the Ticket Transfer and Resale Terms and the Ticket Transfer and Exchange Terms.’
This follows a run of several ticketing woes for FIFA ahead of this summer’s showpiece tournament.
Earlier this week, Daily Mail Sport reported on allegations that FIFA have been working with third-party resale platforms to offload large quantities of tickets, despite repeatedly warning supporters against purchasing tickets through such platforms.
They have also faced significant criticism over inflated ticket prices for the tournament, which starts later this month. A seat at the final on July 18 can cost as much as £24,500.
FIFA have also suffered a website glitch, whereby dozens of fans were able to claim free tickets for the tournament. Despite acknowledging the error, which allowed around 60 fans to obtain freebies, FIFA are now asking fans to pay up or face having their tickets cancelled.
In a statement to Daily Mail Sport, FIFA said: ‘FIFA can confirm that approximately 60 FIFA World Cup 2026 fans received a communication on Wednesday, 3 June regarding tickets that had been allocated at no charge (0 USD) due to a prior payment issue during the checkout process.
‘The tickets requested by these fans remain reserved, and the affected fans have been invited to complete payment of the correct amount. FIFA regrets the error and any inconvenience caused.’
The World Cup kicks off on June 11 when Mexico host South Africa in the opening game.
