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Ticket scam leaves fan ‘so filled with rage, anger’ as Father’s Day plans to see Lionel Messi in action come a cropper
He had spent USD 6,000 out of his own pocket for the overall arrangement. Even after the ticket refund, it’s a lose-lose situation for him.
Sergio Enrique Alvarado Montalvo is a victim of a ticket scam at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. On Father’s Day (June 21), Sergio, who had spent USD 1,700 on tickets, flew from Mexico with his family to Dallas to watch Argentina play Austria and root for global football star Lionel Messi. It was the same game in which Messi scored two goals, and when he scored the first, he became the highest scorer in the history of the World Cup. Sergio’s overall expenses, including flight tickets and stay, actually went up to USD 6,000.
But then, hours before the match, StubHub, a platform where he had done his ticket bookings, informed him that he couldn’t have his tickets and refused to provide comparable replacements due to soaring prices, according to the BBC. But Sergio and his father, still hopeful, went to the venue in Dallas. Sergio spoke to StubHub an hour before the match over the phone, hoping for some last-minute resolution. Nothing happened, and they were left disappointed.
"I was so sad and so frustrated, and so filled with rage, anger," the 45-year-old told the BBC. "It was a mix of feelings that is hard to explain," he added.
What is speculative ticketing?
Sergio was a victim of speculative ticketing, in which a seller often invites bookings even before obtaining the tickets, hoping that later they will get them at a lower price and they will pocket the profit. But when they fail to obtain tickets, they simply cancel the order with a refund. And even if they succeed, but the prices are really high, higher than what they had hoped for initially, in order to stop suffering big losses, they do the same: cancel the order. Basically, people like Sergio are the victims who have already spent so much money on flights and hotels.
Sergio, with no other option, went out to a local fan festival with his family, and there they watched the game on TV. "It was a super sad weekend... inside, outside... [but] we enjoyed the time together," he said.
There have been many such cases, and some fans have decided to sue StubHub, which in its turn has blamed FIFA’s ticketing app, launched just before the event, for not being up to scratch. The governing body, in its response, has refuted the claims.
