World football’s governing body takes action to protect fans against unauthorised ticket resales.
As part of its efforts to protect the fans and prevent unauthorised ticket resales for the 2018 FIFA World Cup™ in Russia, FIFA filed a criminal complaint on 4 June 2018 based on a breach of the law on unfair competition against viagogo AG with the public prosecutor’s office in Geneva.
Over the past months, FIFA has received numerous complaints from individuals, consumer protection bodies and other market players over the opaque and deceptive business conduct of viagogo AG.
Viagogo has come under intense criticism recently over it business practices FIFA prompting FIFA to align with other stakeholders that have already filed criminal complaints against viagogo in Switzerland.
FIFA’s ultimate objective in the fight against the secondary ticket market is to prioritise the safety and security of fans and enforce a fair 2018 FIFA World Cup ticketing pricing scheme.
Recently, FIFA has held discussions with UEFA in order to coordinate action against unauthorised platforms and established cooperation with the Fédération romande des consommateurs (FRC), the consumer protection association for French-speaking Switzerland, which is a strong advocate against ticket sales conducted through unauthorised sources.
A statement released by FIFA warned fans against the use of such sites, reading: “FIFA regards the illicit sale and distribution of tickets as a serious issue and views the security implications of the unauthorised transfer and/or resale of tickets as being of paramount importance. In light of the above, we encourage fans not to purchase tickets from unauthorised platforms/sellers.
“Tickets purchased via unauthorised distribution channels, including all tickets purchased through viagogo AG, will be cancelled once identified. FIFA reserves the right to refuse entry to the stadium to any holder of such tickets. During the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™, FIFA and local authorities will conduct strict admission checks.”
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