KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany — Tickets for Sunday’s Women’s World Cup final in Frankfurt, where the U.S. will take on an upstart Japan team, won’t be easy to come by.
But for soccer fans willing to go the extra yard — and spend a bit more money — it still might be possible to score a seat at Commerzbank Arena to see the Americans go after their first World Cup title since 1999.
To get a ticket, it’s best not to start with FIFA.
“The game is sold out,” ticketing representatives tell eager callers.
Dejan Cirjanic, who works in the FIFA call center in Frankfurt, said Thursday that tickets have been sold out for 10 days. But he offered this: “The expectation of people here was that Germany was going to play in the final. Germany is already out, so there’s a chance to get tickets from people who don’t want to go to the game.”
Those disappointed German soccer fans might try to sell their tickets before Sunday’s 8:45 p.m. game, Cirjanic said, though there’s no telling what sort of prices they may seek. Tickets sold by FIFA ranged from 220 euros for prime seats to under 50 euros.
Brittny Cole, 25, an Army spouse living in Sembach, found an easier way to get tickets. On advice from a friend, she searched on eBay Deutschland (www.ebay.de) Wednesday night, after the U.S. beat France 3-1 to secure a spot in the finals. She and her husband, 1st Lt. Matthew Cole, found a pair of tickets on the German-language-only website for 130 euros each behind one of the goals.
“That was the cheapest one,” she said.
The Coles weren’t deterred by forking over more than $300.
The championship match is scheduled to start at 8:45 p.m. at Commerzbank Arena in Frankfurt.
For those who can’t get tickets, the city of Frankfurt has been floating giant screens in the Main River for fans to watch the games in the “Frankfurt Football Gardens,” which, according to the website features food and drink, sport activities and live music and performances before and after the games.
