Four US States Open Investigations Into FIFA's World Cup Ticket Practices
Texas has joined New York, New Jersey and California in formal investigations into how FIFA priced and sold 2026 World Cup tickets, with allegations that fans were misled about seat locations.
Four US state attorneys general have now opened formal investigations into FIFA's ticketing practices for the 2026 World Cup, with Texas the latest to join, according to ESPN. The probe in Texas follows existing inquiries in New York, New Jersey and California — creating a coordinated wave of legal scrutiny aimed at the governing body just days before the tournament begins.
The Texas inquiry focuses on allegations that supporters who purchased premium-tier tickets for matches in Dallas and Houston were subsequently misled about the quality of their seats. According to ESPN's reporting, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton alleged that fans who bought "Category 1" tickets — expecting the best views — later found their seats reclassified to a lower tier after FIFA adjusted its official seat maps, leaving them in a different location from what they had paid for.
In New York and New Jersey, authorities moved further still, issuing formal subpoenas to FIFA seeking internal documentation on how the governing body priced and sold tickets to eight World Cup matches at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford — including the final on July 19, according to ESPN. The attorneys general there have argued that FIFA's prices far exceeded those charged at any previous edition of the tournament.
At the centre of all four probes is FIFA's use of dynamic pricing — adjusting ticket costs in real time based on demand — which the governing body is using at a World Cup for the first time. FIFA has pointed to a set of discounted $60 tickets made available for every match through national federations as evidence of efforts to keep the tournament accessible. Critics, including a group of US lawmakers who wrote publicly to FIFA in recent weeks, have argued that those measures are insufficient given the broader pricing levels across the tournament.
With the first match scheduled for June 11, the investigations are unlikely to produce immediate relief for ticket-holders at this edition. They do, however, represent a significant escalation in official scrutiny of how FIFA has commercialised the expanded 48-team event — one that has already drawn criticism over high prices, a reversed water-bottle ban, and a batch of tickets mistakenly issued for free before being cancelled.
Sources: ESPN — Texas joins NY, NJ, California in probes over FIFA World Cup ticket practices · ESPN — New York, New Jersey subpoena FIFA in World Cup ticket probe
