Fans miss Dallas World Cup matches when resale tickets never come
Nearly 70,000 fans packed Dallas Stadium for its first 2026 FIFA World Cup match. Two families who planned on attending Sunday's match between Japan and the Netherlands say they were notified last-minute that their tickets were no longer available.
Tamara and Alex Poelma traveled all the way from California and paid almost $1,900 for two tickets.
"That's how much we paid for the tickets and don't even have them. The guy I called him right now and I'm like, 'The tickets haven't been delivered, and he said, 'I'm sorry we're just going to have to refund you,'" said Tamara Poelma.
Unfortunately, the Poelmas are not alone; the same thing happened to Ardas Sabuncuyan.
"Saturday came, I got an email from them, and it says, 'Well, the seller decided not to sell the tickets,'" said Sabuncuyan.
Both parties purchased tickets through Viagogo, which owns StubHub and operates under the same parent company.
The Poelma's say they traveled all the way from California, just to end up with false hope.
"So, the hotel was just almost $2,000, the tickets is $1,800… We bought some nice tickets; we had good seats," said Alex Poelma.
Sabuncuyan planned on taking his son.
"It's not the only financial issue here," he said. "It's an emotional issue because we got the tickets for my son's graduation, and that was a surprise for him."
The tickets they both purchased were for resale; they've been told their money will be refunded, but the bigger question is: What protections do buyers actually have?
ViaGogo lists a guarantee for ticket buyers on its website, which includes:
- Receiving the tickets they purchase on time
- Having access to comparable or better replacement tickets
- Option to receive a full refund in the rare instance there's an issue
CBS News Texas reached out to Viagogo regarding buyer protections, but has not heard back.
