Нью-Жерси муж улсын Ерөнхий прокурор Дэлхийн аваргын тэмцээн өндөрлөсний дараа ч ФИФА-гийн тасалбар борлуулах үйл ажиллагаанд хийж буй мөрдөн шалгах ажиллагаагаа үргэлжлүүлнэ гэдгээ мэдэгдлээ.
Тавдугаар сард Нью-Йорк болон Нью-Жерси мужийн Ерөнхий прокурорууд ФИФА-гийн тасалбарын ил тод бус байдал, үнийн өсөлт болон хөгжөөн дэмжигчдийг төөрөгдүүлсэн асуудлаар мөрдөн шалгах ажиллагаа эхлүүлсэн юм. Хөгжөөн дэмжигчдийн зүгээс тасалбарын байршил, үнийн уян хатан систем болон тасалбар борлуулагдсаны дараа өндөр үнэтэй шинэ ангилал нэмж гаргасан зэрэгт олон гомдол гаргажээ.
Мөрдөн шалгах ажиллагааны хүрээнд Нью-Жерси дэх МетЛайф цэнгэлдэх хүрээлэнд болсон найман тоглолт, тэр дундаа ням гарагт болсон аваргын төлөөх тоглолтын тасалбар борлуулалтын мэдээллийг голчлон нягталж байна. Прокурор Женнифер Давенпортын хэлснээр, ФИФА 2025 оны аравдугаар сараас 2026 оны дөрөвдүгээр сарын хооронд 104 тоглолтын 90 гаруйнх нь тасалбарын үнийг өсгөсөн нь тогтоогдоод байгаа аж.
Калифорни болон Техас мужийн прокурорын газрууд ч мөн адил хөгжөөн дэмжигчдийн гомдлын дагуу ФИФА-гийн тасалбар борлуулах үйл ажиллагаанд шалгалт хийж эхэлжээ. Холбогдох албаныхан муж улс хоорондын мэдээлэл солилцох замаар хэргийг үргэлжлүүлэн шалгах боломжтойг үгүйсгэсэнгүй.
Дэлгэрэнгүй эх сурвалжийг харах
Эх сурвалжийг нээх ↓
The Attorney General of New Jersey says the state intends to continue investigating FIFA’s ticketing practices following the culmination of the men’s World Cup this weekend at MetLife Stadium.
In May, the Attorneys General of New York and New Jersey launched an investigation into FIFA’s World Cup ticketing practices, and sent subpoenas to global soccer’s governing body following a build-up to the competition dominated by fan frustration over its approach, pricing and transparency regarding ticket sales.
A news release by the AGs cited complaints from supporters, which included those who felt misled by stadium maps over the location of their tickets, FIFA’s use of variable pricing, the perception of scarcity in available tickets, as well as FIFA’s invention of a higher-tiered and higher-priced “front” row category after millions of tickets had already been sold.
The Athletic detailed in April how FIFA had altered those maps from one sales phase to the next, before assigning some ticket buyers a seat that, in a previous phase, had belonged to a different category.
The AGs said they would be receiving “investigatory support from the New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP)” as they subpoenaed information from FIFA about its practices, with a particular focus on the eight World Cup games held at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, including Sunday’s World Cup final.
FIFA to extend half-time for World Cup final | World Cup Daily Briefing
Megan Feringa and Luke Bosher
‘We want to protect consumers’
In a new interview with The Athletic, New Jersey AG Jennifer Davenport says that the largely full stadiums during the World Cup has not diminished her appetite to examine whether fans were misled or poorly treated by FIFA.
The United States may be hosting a FIFA tournament again in 2031, as it is leading a sole joint bid with Mexico, Jamaica and Costa Rica to host the women’s World Cup.
“Our appetite is to make sure that we’re protecting consumers all the time,” AG Davenport said. “The exploitation of fans and consumers is a huge piece of that. This started because of what we were seeing in reporting and when we have information like that, we want to make sure that we use our laws and our protections to make sure that we’re looking into it, especially as we’re grappling with an affordability crisis.”
She continued: “We’re really taking a look at all the different ways that we can protect consumers. We are looking at a few issues. The first is whether or not fans were misled about the seating location of the tickets they bought.
“For the initial ticket sales, FIFA seat maps divided the stadium into four zones, categories one through four. The category one seats were the most desirable. But after fans had already bought tickets, FIFA created new zones, which included a front row in a category, made up of the most desirable seats within the categories.
France vs. Sweden in the last-32 is one of eight World Cup games held at MetLife. (Justin Setterfield / Getty Images)
“We saw the reports indicating that there were fans who bought the tickets before these new zones were introduced but were then excluded from the seats and instead assigned less desirable seats. We also saw reports that some fans didn’t receive the tickets in the category they paid for.
“We’re also looking into the ticket prices themselves, which were significantly higher this year than in previous World Cup tournaments. We know that FIFA issued or used variable pricing to adjust the prices based on demand. As they released tickets in phases, prices for some of those matches skyrocketed.
“What we’ve seen is that between October 2025 and April 2026, prices were raised by FIFA for more than 90 of the 104 World Cup matches.”
The AG has authority over all law enforcement in the state, essentially making the position the chief legal officer of New Jersey.
AG Davenport told The Athletic that it is “too early” to talk about the relief or penalties that could be imposed on FIFA, but that her office is investigating “to make sure that fans and consumers aren’t being exploited.”
A nationwide issue for FIFA
New Jersey and New York are not alone in investigating FIFA’s ticketing practices.
California’s attorney general wrote to FIFA in May regarding the World Cup ticketing maps in a letter sent to FIFA’s legal department. Rob Bonta, the state’s attorney general, requested information from the global soccer governing body “to assess whether California law may have been violated” during the ticket sales process.
The Texas Attorney General’s Office then said in June it had opened an investigation into FIFA’s World Cup ticket sale practices following similar complaints by fans relating to the games played in Dallas and Houston.
Attorney General Ken Paxton said that fans had been “misled” and that it could constitute a violation of Texas consumer protection laws.
AG Davenport said it is possible the states work together to establish the case against FIFA.
She said: “We do have many times when we work on things that we share with other offices and our counterparts. As a career prosecutor and somebody who has worked at the federal level as well as the state level, you’re always sharing information to the extent you can. I can’t speak yet publicly about what that information may be or what may be shared.”
FIFA has been approached for comment.
