The England fan selling his second home to go to the World Cup warns the tournament is 'out of reach' for ordinary supporters.

Retired teacher Andy Milne attacked FIFA after "staggering"£8,333 World Cup final tickets went on general sale which he said was 'the cost of a family car'. Andy first attended the 1982 final - when Italy defeated West Germany 3-1 - for the princely sum of £4.15.

His book 'That World Cup Guy', out next month, tells how he attended nine tournaments following England and saw prices rise 76,117 percent."The £8,333 ticket is staggering, it makes my 1982 final ticket of £4.15 look like pocket change," he said.

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"To put it in context, that’s a 76,117% increase, a rise 761 times faster than general UK prices over the same period. The cost of living has “only” risen 7.25 times since 1982. The average annual salary in the UK in 1982 was £5,000 to £7,000 according to House of Commons research. It equated to around £154.30 for men and £98.90 per week for women. It’s simply eye-watering."

Andy found fame at the tournament in Qatar when he was seen holding a replica of the famous Jules Rimet World Cup trophy. The photo of him celebrating our 3-0 victory over Senegal in the round of 16 appeared in the Mirror.

He was immediately dubbed a 'Steve McClaren lookalike' as the image went viral. He will be in the United States for seven weeks and has tickets for every game up to the final. But he has put his second home in Northwich, Cheshire on the market for £350,000 to help fund the trip

"I’ve been following England and World Cups for decades," he told the Mirror. "I’ve never seen prices so far out of reach for ordinary fans. It’s not just the tickets, accommodation, flights, transport, parking, and even food and side events have all escalated massively."

He said hotels near Arlington Stadium, the venue of England's first match against Croatia on June 17, were charging three to four times their usual rates during match weeks.

A stay that might normally cost £150–£200 is now £600–£800. The cost of flights to the US this summer vary according to the timing of the return, airline and destination airport. But fans can expect to pay around £700 for a single and £1100 for a return.

"The other big issue is allocation," he added. "England’s first match is in a 94,000-capacity stadium. "It has only 4,022 tickets for travelling supporters, roughly four percent of the seats.

"Previous tournaments often gave fans 8 to 10 percent, so true supporters are getting less than half the access, at sky-high prices." Then there’s the resale marketplace. He said: "FIFA has effectively legalised ticket touting and, astonishingly, is taking 15% from both the buyer and seller - a 30% tax for simply passing a ticket on.

"Meanwhile, selling tickets outside the official site is punished with cancelled tickets and possible legal action. The irony is hard to ignore: fans are being exploited in the name of 'serving fans'.

"I’ll admit it’s slightly ironic that I’m prepared to sell a small part of my pension to go myself. But this is not about profit, it’s about passion. Football has been part of my life for decades, and there’s nothing like the atmosphere of following England at a World Cup.

"That said, the 2026 pricing is extreme and completely out of reach for families, younger fans, or anyone on a modest income. Football should be for everyone, and I hope that one day FIFA balances the books without pricing out the people who have made this sport so special.

"But for now, it’s shocking to see a World Cup final ticket cost more than a family car." Andy is planning a road trip to Memphis to visit Graceland, Elvis Presley's former home, and will see some tribute acts along the way.
Andy, a former head of science at Grange School, Northwich, went to his first World Cup in Spain in 1982 at the age of 19.

He continued following the team even after all his belongings were stolen, and that was the beginning of a remarkable journey because an England fan. He is now a 'top capper' as he has seen so many games and that meant that he could buy tickets for every England game - all the way to the final.

The first open sale of tickets for the 2026 World Cup showed Fifa is charging up to $10,990 (£8,333) to be at the final. It is thought to be the most expensive ever general admission to a football match. In its World Cup bid, the US, Canada and Mexico said tickets to the final would cost a maximum of $1,550 (£1,174). Then, when the first batch of tickets went on sale in December, the most expensive was listed at $8,680 (£6,581). Tickets for the Qatar World Cup final cost the equivalent of $1,604 (£1,214) for the top-priced seat.

FIFA said that fans benefit from a dedicated ticket pricing tier, designed to make following their teams on football’s greatest stage "more affordable".

"The Supporter Entry Tier is available at the fixed price of USD 60 per ticket for each of the 104 matches, including the final," said their spokesperson. Each Participating Member Association (PMA) is allocated 8% of the tickets for each match in which it participates. These allocations are set at a fixed price for the duration of the current ticket sales phase.

"In total, 50% of each PMA allocation will fall within the most affordable range: the Supporter Value Tier (40%) and the Supporter Entry Tier (10%). The seating arrangements for PMA supporters for the FIFA World Cup 26 are in line with what we have previously delivered for previous tournaments.

"The pricing model adopted for FIFA World Cup 26 reflects the existing market practice for major entertainment and sporting events within our hosts on a daily basis, soccer included. This is also a reflection of the treatment of the secondary market for tickets, which has a distinct legal treatment than in many other parts of the world.

"We are focused on ensuring fair access to our game for existing as well as prospective fans. FIFA resale fees align with North American industry trends across various sports and entertainment sectors. As a not-for-profit organisation, it is important to note that the revenue FIFA generates from the World Cup is reinvested to fuel the growth of the game (men, women, youth) throughout FIFA’s 211 member associations globally.

"We expect to reinvest more than 90% of its budgeted investments for the cycle 2023-2026 back in the game to significantly boost global football development. Without FIFA’s financial support more than 50% of Member Associations could not operate."