World Cup fan violence spreads as FIFA faces criticism over ticketing

Reports of violence among supporters at the World Cup are drawing growing concern, with criticism focused on FIFA’s ticketing and crowd-segregation policies. Videos shared on social media showed clashes between Iranian and New Zealand fans in the stands at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles after their 2-2 match on Monday, with several fans seen punching and shoving each other on the stairways before police dispersed the disturbance. It was not immediately clear what sparked the fight.

More footage surfaced overnight of Algerian and Argentine fans confronting each other. Separate disturbances were also reported in New York City, where witnesses said Argentine and Algerian supporters fought in Times Square the day before the teams were due to meet in Kansas City. The fighting overshadowed World Cup celebrations in the city.

Ronan Evain, chief executive of Football Supporters Europe, accused FIFA of putting fans at risk by failing to properly separate rival supporter groups. He said, "The lack of separation between fans is not normal in a tournament of this scale," adding that FIFA no longer really knows who holds which tickets because of pressure to sell more tickets and allow resale. "The risk that fans of one team will find themselves in the stands of a rival team is higher than ever," he said.

FIFA responded that 8% of tickets for each match are reserved in advance for the participating teams’ supporters. Critics argue that widespread resale across different platforms makes it hard to control who actually sits where. Evain said FIFA now has "zero control" over what happens to tickets once they are resold, calling it a risk that may not have been properly considered. Separately, Iran said midfielder Mehdi Torabi may miss the rest of the tournament because his U.S. entry visa was valid for a single entry only, and the federation is trying to secure a new visa ahead of matches against Belgium and Egypt.