If you’re hoping to buy World Cup tickets, watch out for scammers
The Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre is reminding soccer fans to be careful when purchasing tickets
With 15,000 extra seats added during construction at BMO Field and Bosnia and Herzegovina lined up as Canada’s official first opponent, World Cup plans are coming together.
But amid the excitement, the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre is warning soccer fans to protect themselves from scams.
Related: FIFA has cancelled reservations at hotel rooms across Toronto
“Fraudsters are known to leverage the attention of world events to carry out fraud. With the FIFA World Cup 2026 set to be the largest global sporting event, the CAFC is urging World Cup followers to recognize, reject and report fraud. Make sure you verify products and services are legitimate before completing your transaction,” Jeff Thomson, a CAFC representative said in a statement.
The anti-fraud organization, along with the RCMP, Ontario Provincial Police and local law enforcement in Canada’s host cities, Toronto and Vancouver, have been working to track fraudulent tickets as well as fake short-term rental listings in the lead-up to this summer’s World Cup.
Fans using the resale market to buy or sell tickets should stick to FIFA’s verified exchange platform and stay away from any third-party vendors, including sellers on Facebook Marketplace. It’s also suggested to make purchases with credit cards that have fraud protection. Going through reputable platforms to secure accommodation is advised.
CTV News interviewed a fan, named Adonis Ibrahim, who agreed to pay half the price of a $400 World Cup ticket in advance to a seller he found through Facebook. Eventually, he determined the alleged seller had tricked him. “I was taken advantage of. I’m a father. I saved up this money and now it’s gone,” he said. “Don’t get scammed. It’s not a good feeling.”
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Carly Lewis is a journalist whose work has appeared in the New York Times and the New York Times Magazine, Vanity Fair, Wired, Interview Magazine, Pitchfork, Elle, and Maclean’s, where she is a contributing editor. Her work has been recognized by the National Magazine Awards and the Digital Publishing Awards. She reports on city life, culture—including what people do online—politics, art and crime. She received the Dave Greber Freelance Writers Award for “The Murder of Ashley Wadsworth,” an investigative feature about a Canadian teenager who was killed by a man she met on social media, published by Maclean’s.
