Fifa World Cup: persistence pays off in Russia on the hunt for an England-Croatia semi-final ticket
How a desperate search for a World Cup semi-final ticket paid off after a last-minute decision to head out to Russia
You wait in an online queue, ready to take your chance if the tickets flash up. Occasionally they do – and then disappear instantly. Infrequently, the site even lets you put one in your online basket – but it doesn’t let you enter your security code to complete the transaction.
“It feels like some kind of futuristic dystopia,” messages Matt, an England supporting mate who spent seven hours of Sunday trying to get a ticket for the semi-final between England and Croatia. “I continually confirm that I’m not a robot only to be rewarded with more grey nothing. Any self respecting robot would have given up by now.”
I use a ticket number from a friend already in Russia for the Fan ID which acts as a visa waiver. Getting your passport style photo to conform to the exact specifications is tricky, but once the photo is accepted it takes three minutes and gets you into Russia.
On Monday night, having asked anyone who might be able to help with match tickets for both semi-finals, my plane touches down in Moscow and the search continues. I figured that Russia’s elimination, plus those of the South American sides with vast followings would slacken demand in the huge stadiums, but in five days I’ve been offered one ticket for a face value of US$485 for France v Belgium – a price too high.