NYC’s next mayor to oppose World Cup surge pricing

One of the leading candidates to be New York City’s next mayor has started a petition against FIFA’s plans to use surge or dynamic pricing at next year’s World Cup.

Zohran Mamdani, currently leading the race to become the next mayor of New York City, has launched a “Game Over Greed” campaign that is calling on the global game’s governing body to drop its plans to use dynamic pricing for next summer’s World Cup.

Surge pricing models can lead to significant price increases depending on demand – and the FSA has previously spoken out against its use in football, with FSA chair Tom Greatrex speaking to MPs in Parliament in February 2025.

Senior FIFA sources have said, according to reports from The Athletic this week, that prices start at $60 for the cheapest group-stage seats and range up to $6,730 for the most expensive non-corporate tickets for the final.

Now Mamdani is calling for an end to its implementation at the World Cup along with a cap on ticket resales and 15% of match tickets set aside for local residents at a discounted rate.

“People across this, across this country, across the world are fed up with a model of ticket pricing that views fans as a commodity that can be priced higher and higher and higher.” https://t.co/uN0knBFsWJ

— Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@ZohranKMamdani) September 10, 2025

Mamdani’s petition says: “The FIFA World Cup is coming to New York City next year. It’s an incredible opportunity for economic growth and community spirit in our city — but only if working-class New Yorkers can actually attend the matches.

“This year, for the first time, FIFA is using dynamic pricing for ticket sales. They can raise prices, in real time, depending on how much profit they think they can make off us. Those tickets can then be resold on an official FIFA platform with NO price cap — yet another method of gatekeeping the game. And to make matters worse, unlike for the past three World Cups, there are no seats set aside for local residents.

“The biggest sporting event in the world is happening in our backyard and the vast majority of New Yorkers won’t be able to see it.”

What does the FSA think?

Last autumn the FSA submitted evidence to Parliamentary investigations into the use of surge pricing in the sporting and cultural sectors.

FSA Tom Greatrex said: “Dynamic pricing models are just the latest way in which some are determined to exploit the loyalty of football supporters, without any recognition of the downsides on atmosphere, occasion and attendance, that are an integral part of what makes elite football so marketable.

“It is only a couple of years since clubs and owners said football without fans is nothing – this approach risks pricing out the fans whose loyalty, passion and commitment is part of the ‘product’ sold around the world.”

The World Cup is a generational opportunity for many fans and every effort should be made to keep it as accessible as possible so we welcome Mamdani’s political intervention.

In the meantime our Free Lions Fans’ Embassy team will continue their preparations for the tournament as they ready themselves to help supporters over the largest – and possibly most expensive – World Cup to date.

Thomas Concannon from our Free Lions Fans’ Embassy team said: “Dynamic pricing is yet another major challenge for supporters who wish to attend the World Cup.

“Official participating nation allocations often don’t satisfy demand, meaning many supporters find themselves leaning on the official FIFA sales, and dynamic pricing models could easily scupper any realistic chance people have of being able to afford to attend this tournament.

“The costs will already be through the roof, with this being such a widespread tournament in terms of travel, the biggest in history. Hotel prices in host cities are already way above and beyond standard pricing.

“Dynamic pricing might be standard practice at sporting events in the US, but it is certainly not a standard practice on the world stage, and this is supposed to be a tournament for the world.

“We fear the unique atmosphere that football produces worldwide will not make an appearance at this tournament at many games due to the supporters who would normally be there to create it being priced out by this latest money grab.”