---
title: "Fans accuse FIFA of ‘betrayal’ over World Cup ticket prices"
description: "Supporters call World Cup prices unfair because a scarce, enormously desirable experience is not being subsidized for their personal enjoyment."
author: "Pau Friedman"
kind: "link"
published_at: "2025-12-11"
url: "https://pau.fm/blog/2025/12/11/fans-accuse-fifa-of-betrayal-over-world-cup-ticket-prices"
markdown_url: "https://pau.fm/blog/2025/12/11/fans-accuse-fifa-of-betrayal-over-world-cup-ticket-prices.md"
canonical_url: "https://pau.fm/blog/2025/12/11/fans-accuse-fifa-of-betrayal-over-world-cup-ticket-prices"
external_url: "https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/47277227/soccer-fan-groups-accuse-fifa-rip-pricing-world-cup-tickets"
---

# [Fans accuse FIFA of ‘betrayal’ over World Cup ticket prices](<https://www.espn.com/soccer/story/_/id/47277227/soccer-fan-groups-accuse-fifa-rip-pricing-world-cup-tickets>)

The complaint is that a scarce, enormously desirable asset is not being subsidized for the personal
enjoyment of “real fans.” A $60 ticket does not make the World Cup more abundant. It replaces price
allocation with a lottery, then creates an aftermarket devoted to undoing the allocation.

If seeing the most popular sporting event on the planet matters to you, pay more than the next
person. A lottery is not fairer because its winners have better moral branding. It is a direct
subsidy to a small random group, followed by deadweight spent preventing them from trading it.