Tickets originally bought by England fans for Monday’s World Cup last-16 game against Mexico have been relisted for thousands of pounds on Fifa’s official resale portal.
The most expensive tickets are four listed together, with a face value of $605 (£460), that are now priced at $30,000 (£22,800) each.
There is a 15% Fifa fee for the buyer to pay, taking the cost to $34,500 (£26,220) – 57 times face value.
The seller must also pay Fifa a 15% fee of $4,500 (£3,420), but that would still leave a profit of $25,500 (£19,380) per ticket.
The cheapest ticket available has a total cost of $3,448 (£2,620) from a face value of $295 (£224) – nearly 12 times the original price.
The Football Association has confirmed that these tickets were purchased through the England Supporters’ Travel Club (ESTC) ballot after the draw was made in December.
Members build up ‘caps’ by attending matches home and away. Fans with the most caps will get priority to the best games and the cheapest tickets.
As of Friday morning, 76 tickets were listed in the ‘supporter’ categories behind the goal in the England section.
It is not possible to ascertain if they are being sold by the original ESTC purchaser, or if they have been bought by another party and then listed at the inflated prices.
Tickets which are part of the ESTC allocation can only be bought by users who self-identified as a ‘Fan of’ England when they signed up with Fifa.
The prices, which can be altered up or down, are set by the seller and only indicate an asking price, not what a buyer is prepared to pay.
The FA cannot restrict the resale of these tickets because it is permitted by Fifa.
Tickets in the cheapest, $60 (£45) category, however, cannot be listed for resale.
The ESTC announced on Tuesday that a home match anti-touting policy was being introduced following a successful trial.
The game in Mexico City, which kicks off at 01:00 BST on Monday, will be broadcast live on BBC One.
The ESTC, which costs £65 a year for renewing adult members, was given an allocation of 3,000 tickets for the match at the 80,824 Azteca, which cannot be increased.
In total, 4,373 members applied for a ticket, meaning the game was markedly oversubscribed.
Any supporter who had at least 27 caps was guaranteed to get a ticket at face value.
The tickets could only be listed once England’s place was confirmed on Wednesday evening after beating DR Congo in the round of 32.
The Football Supporters’ Association has been approached for comment.
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Shortly after the fixture was updated on Fifa’s resale site 63 ESTC tickets appeared.
That rose to 76 by Friday morning, with the prices as follows.
Supporter Premier ($770, £585)
- Seventeen tickets are listed, mostly in the range of $6,000 (£4,560) to $9,000 (£6,840), including the Fifa resale fee.
- Four cost over $10,000 (£7,600).
- The most expensive is $17,250 (£13,110). The cheapest is $4,140 (£3,146).
Supporter Standard ($605, £460)
- Twenty-seven tickets are listed, mostly in the range of $6,000 (£4,560) to $8,000 (£6,080).
- Seven are priced at more than $10,000 (£7,600).
- The most expensive is $34,500 (£26,220). The cheapest is $4,600 (£3,496).
Supporter Value ($295, £224)
- Thirty-two tickets are listed, mostly in the range of $4,000 (£3,040) to $6,000 (£4,560).
- Only one ticket is listed above $10,000 (£7,600), with a total cost of $23,000 (£17,480). The cheapest is $3,448 (£2,620).
- Tickets on resale in the non-England sections of the Azteca are generally available at similar prices.
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