Do World Cup teams really need a 50% prize money hike after tickets furore? | Paul MacInnes

"On the one hand, there was the revelation that spectators are being asked to pay more than twice as much for match tickets than they were in Qatar. On the other, the news that prize money for competing teams is to rise by more than 50% on four years ago. Stakeholders are doing good! Fans? Not so good. It hasn't taken long for some of those watching to wonder whether things could be done differently."

"Tom Greatrex, the chair of the Football Supporters' Association, which represents fans in England and Wales, argued that the ability to pay expanded prize money, itself a result of expanded revenue, showed there is no need to charge extortionate ticket prices to the supporters who bring the vibrancy to the World Cup. You could go so far as to say there was never a real need to do it in the first place."

"First off, correct the most offensive part of this whole thing and redistribute some of the expanded prize money into slashing ticket prices for disabled supporters and their companions across the piece (currently, there is no discounting at all). Second, give free match tickets 300 a match, say to fans who lug drums and flags and face paint halfway across the world to provide 90 minutes of noise and colour (you could do this through associated fan groups such as the England Supporters Travel Club)."

Spectators face match ticket prices more than double those in Qatar while prize money for teams will rise by over 50% compared with four years ago. Stakeholders gain from expanded revenue while many fans experience hardship and question pricing choices. Tom Greatrex of the Football Supporters' Association says expanded prizes show there is no need for extortionate ticket costs for supporters who create World Cup atmosphere. Proposed remedies include reallocating some prize money to slash or waive prices for disabled supporters and companions, allocating free tickets to traveling, flag-bearing fans, and abandoning dynamic pricing and ticket resale systems.

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