StubHub Sued in Proposed Class Action Over World Cup Ticket Delivery Failures

Complaint alleges buyers relied on StubHub’s FanProtect Guarantee only to see World Cup orders canceled or undelivered, seeks at least $5 million in damages

StubHub is facing a proposed class-action lawsuit over its handling of World Cup ticket orders, escalating weeks of public criticism from fans who say tickets purchased through the resale marketplace were canceled or failed to arrive in time for matches.

The lawsuit, filed June 30 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York (embedded below), accuses StubHub of misleading consumers who purchased World Cup tickets on the secondary market and then “did not get what they paid for” when tickets were not delivered as promised. The complaint seeks to represent a nationwide class of U.S. consumers who purchased World Cup tickets through StubHub and did not receive them as promised, and alleges an amount in controversy exceeding $5 million.

The case centers on two California plaintiffs, Julie Reeker Moghal and Reuben Renteria, who say they paid thousands of dollars for World Cup tickets through StubHub only to be left without access to their matches.

Moghal allegedly paid $1,905 for three tickets to a June 18 match at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles. According to the complaint, she received notice that her tickets were ready, only to later learn that StubHub had canceled the order. The lawsuit alleges she “frantically spent hours on the phone with StubHub,” was told tickets would be delivered an hour before the match, then drove to the stadium, waited in line, and never received them.

Renteria allegedly paid $2,294.69 for two tickets to a June 18 Mexico vs. Korea match in Mexico, then traveled for the game only to find that the order had been canceled. The complaint says he was eventually refunded on June 25 “after significant complaints,” but had already lost money on travel and time because he relied on StubHub’s representations.

“Plaintiffs and Class members were lied to and purchased World Cup Tickets for large sums of money – only to incur tremendous financial losses due to the necessity to pay travel expenses, take off time from work, and for other ancillary costs,” the complaint alleges. It calls the episode “a new low for a sports ticketing industry that has been rampant with consumer protection issues time and time again to the detriment of the fans who make sports special.”

The complaint brings claims under the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, California’s Unfair Competition Law, California’s Consumer Legal Remedies Act, California’s False Advertising Law, and common-law conversion. It seeks damages, restitution, disgorgement, attorneys’ fees, and injunctive relief that would require StubHub to stop selling World Cup tickets.

The lawsuit puts StubHub’s FanProtect Guarantee at the center of the dispute. The complaint quotes StubHub as telling consumers that it “back[s] every order so you can buy and sell tickets with 100% confidence,” while alleging that the guarantee became misleading when consumers were not provided with promised tickets, comparable replacements, or timely refunds.

StubHub has declined to comment directly on the pending litigation, but defended its broader handling of World Cup orders in a statement reported by Reuters. “Our singular goal is to get fans into events, and if anything goes wrong, our FanProtect Guarantee provides replacement tickets or a full refund,” the company said. “The World Cup is no different, and the issues fans have experienced are largely driven by problems with the event organizer’s own ticketing infrastructure.”

That defense mirrors StubHub’s response throughout the controversy. As TicketNews reported last week, the company has argued that many of the World Cup delivery problems trace back to FIFA’s mobile-ticketing system, newly launched app, transfer restrictions, and acceptance process, rather than fraud or systemic wrongdoing by the marketplace itself. TicketNews previously reported that CBC, AP, Business Insider, KHOU, and other outlets had detailed complaints from fans whose World Cup tickets were canceled or could not be transferred into FIFA’s app.

StubHub has also said it does not allow speculative ticketing. In a prior statement to CBC the company said sellers who violate its rules face penalties including fines, stricter requirements, and account suspension.

Outside reporting has described a broader pattern of last-minute failures. Some fans detailed receiving cancellation notices just hours before kickoff after traveling for matches, including buyers who said StubHub initially promised replacement tickets under FanProtect before only offering refunds. Others have described being caught between StubHub representatives and FIFA ticketing staff, with each side blaming the other while buyers waited outside the stadium. Some cases appeared to involve technical transfer glitches, while others may have involved sellers who never had tickets to deliver.

FIFA has pushed fans toward its own official resale marketplace, saying it is the only channel through which it can guarantee delivery. But that position is also part of the tension underlying the lawsuit and the wider controversy. The complaint quotes FIFA’s resale terms stating that the FIFA marketplace is the World Cup’s “only authorized peer-to-peer marketplace” and warning that tickets obtained from third-party sources “may be invalid” and can be canceled without notice.

At the same time, the complaint argues that FIFA’s official resale structure creates its own consumer pressure by adding what it describes as a 30% resale charge, split between buyer and seller. That leaves consumers in a difficult position, according to the lawsuit: buy through FIFA’s official system at higher prices, or turn to a third-party marketplace like StubHub for potentially cheaper or easier-to-navigate inventory, despite FIFA’s warnings that third-party tickets are not guaranteed.

The complaint describes that as a “Hobson’s Choice,” alleging that many fans turned to StubHub because they missed FIFA’s primary sale or could not afford official resale prices. But it argues that StubHub should not have continued selling World Cup tickets if it could not reliably deliver them or if the tickets were not authorized by FIFA.

“StubHub misrepresents its authority to sell World Cup Tickets, then, when Plaintiffs and Class members travel thousands of miles to attend World Cup matches, there are no tickets to be found despite having paid for them,” the lawsuit alleges.

Document – StubHub Complaint