HONG KONG: More than 3,500 of the more than 10,000 counterfeit 2018 World Cup tickets available globally have been sold to Chinese football fans, according to Chinese media.
The online news portal from western China, Thecover.cn, referred to a Russian embassy notice on social media, which said its government was investigating a Russian company for selling more than 3,500 counterfeit tickets to Chinese tourists and travel agents.
Soccer fans from China have snapped up 40,000 tickets for the Fifa World Cup in Russia that kicked off on Thursday, even though its national team failed to qualify.
The embassy notice said the “Anzhi Company” from Russia claimed to have obtained written approval to sell tickets from the World Cup Russia organising committee but the letter turned out to be fake, according to Thecover.cn.
Yang Jun, a travel planner with China Youth Travel in Sichuan province, told Thecover.cn that more than 1,000 of the fake tickets were sold in Chengdu alone.
“We ordered more than 40 tickets but have yet to receive any,” the travel agent said.
A story in the Chongqing Morning Post said that more than 90 Chinese soccer fans from Chongqing would not be able to attend any matches at the World Cup after their travel agents ordered counterfeit tickets from a Russian website. On Saturday, about 30 Chongqing tourists were denied entry to the Argentina v Iceland match in Moscow. – SCMP
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