Pou and Pallone Rip FIFA Publicity Stunt

WASHINGTON, DC - Congresswoman Nellie Pou (D-NJ-09), the top Democrat on the House Homeland Security Task Force overseeing World Cup security, and Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ-06), the Ranking Member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, today called FIFA's decision to sell 1,000 tickets for $50 each to New York City residents a publicity stunt that does little to address soaring prices keeping many fans out of the World Cup.

"This publicity stunt does nothing to address the cost of tickets. One thousand tickets spread over seven games, by our math, amounts to 0.17% of available tickets for those games," said Congressmembers Pou and Pallone. "FIFA must respond to our inquiry on their questionable ticketing practices and take broader measures now, right now, to lower ticket prices for all the fans. Time is running very short for real action."

Pou and Pallone have been highly critical of FIFA's inflated ticket prices. On May 7, 2026, the two wrote to the head of FIFA, seeking urgent answers from FIFA on a ticket sales process that has become increasingly confusing, expensive, and unfair for fans with the games slated to start in America in just 36 days.

FIFA's World Cup ticket sales process has faced growing criticism from fans over rising prices, confusing sales practices, and a lack of transparency. For the first time, FIFA introduced "dynamic pricing," allowing ticket costs to rise based on demand. Reports indicate prices for many matches have sharply increased since sales opened, with some tickets more than doubling in cost, including World Cup Final seats reportedly climbing from about $6,700 to nearly $11,000.

Fans have also raised concerns about long online waits, disappearing lower-priced tickets, and unclear inventory practices. Although FIFA has publicly suggested many matches were sold out, additional ticket releases have continued, leading to questions about whether tickets are being strategically withheld to create a sense of scarcity and encourage rushed purchases.

Additional complaints involve confusing seat assignments and steep resale fees, with combined buyer and seller fees reportedly approaching 30 percent on resale transactions.

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