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Football-related scams made up over half of all sports ticket fraud cases in the UK, totalling more than £127,000 (€153,000/$161,000) according to Santander.
A total of £243,000 has been lost to sports ticket scams between January and September this year.
The bank reported that young men aged 19-34 were the prime targets and had lost £80,491 to scammers in 2024 already, equating to 41% of the victims.
Additionally, the average loss per scam climbed to £352 – up from £225 last year.
While football-related scams were the most common, other sports saw bigger losses per victim. Motorsports ticket scams had the highest average loss at £3,851, with losses reaching £50,070 altogether. Golf was up next, with fans losing an average of £860 and a total of £51,685.
Santander warned fans to be vigilant when purchasing tickets and to only buy from official sellers, and never pay by bank transfer.
Many scams involve a fake ticket listed for sale or a ticket that never existed, with the deals usually advertised on social media or through fake websites.
“Football fans have lost over £127,000 to ticket scams this year alone. Scammers know how to exploit the excitement around big games,” said Chris Ainsley, head of fraud risk management at Santander.
“Don’t let them score at your expense. A quick check could be the difference between cheering in the stands or being left on the bench, out of pocket and out of luck.”
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