StubHub sued in U.S. courts over canceled FIFA World Cup tickets

Fans Julia Reeker Moghal and Reuben Renteria, both California residents, filed a class‑action lawsuit against ticket‑resale platform StubHub in Manhattan federal court. The complaint alleges that StubHub sold World Cup tickets that either never existed or were revoked without notice, forcing the plaintiffs to travel to Inglewood, California and Guadalajara, Mexico only to find their orders canceled. Moghal paid $1,905 for three tickets to the Switzerland‑Bosnia match and Renteria $2,294 for two tickets to the Mexico‑South Korea match; neither received the tickets nor a prompt refund, incurring travel and accommodation costs.

The suit seeks at least $5 million in damages, an injunction barring StubHub from selling World Cup tickets, and the surrender of any profits from such sales to affected customers. StubHub cited its FanProtect Guarantee and blamed FIFA’s “poor digital infrastructure,” while FIFA said it has no control over secondary‑market transactions. U.S. regulators and Canada’s Competition Bureau have been approached for investigations. The plaintiffs claim the incident represents “a new low for the sports ticketing industry.”