Aydan Özoguz, the chairwoman of the Bundestag’s Sports Committee and a member of the SPD, has sharply criticized FIFA’s ticket pricing policy for the upcoming football World Cup. Speaking to the “Rheinische Post”, Özoguz stated, “Affordable tickets are a scarce commodity, which unfortunately means that stadium gates remain closed to many enthusiastic football fans from all countries”.
She added that the “FIFA’s pricing policy is absurd. It is turning a football festival into an exclusive event for wealthy customers, prioritizing business seating over a vibrant atmosphere of fans”. The SPD politician demanded that FIFA “hit the brakes completely on ticket prices and lower them”. She also urged that the DFB (German Football Association) must lobby during the FIFA Council to block this harmful pricing strategy.
Adding to the controversy, the official resale page of the world football federation recently offered four tickets for the final match at a price of nearly two million Euros each.
Stephan Mayer, the political spokesperson for the CSU faction on sport, also called for the DFB to take a stronger stance on fan interests regarding the upcoming World Cup. Addressing the “Rheinische Post”, Mayer said, “Football lives on its fans, on enthusiasm, and broad participation. Therefore, FIFA must exercise much greater restraint regarding ticket policy”.
Mayer emphasized his expectation that the DFB would clearly raise fan concerns with FIFA and advocate for fair and affordable access within its means. The CSU politician added that a World Cup must not give the impression of being “an exclusive event for only a few very wealthy spectators”. He deemed ticket prices reaching millions of Euros “completely excessive and unmarketable”. Even acknowledging that the listings were part of the official resale market and not primary sales, Mayer warned that the advertising sent “a false signal”.
