A Vancouver man has filed a proposed national class action lawsuit against StubHub after World Cup tickets he bought never materialized.
Vancouver-based Westpoint Law Group announced the proposed class action against StubHub on Friday (July 17). The defendants are Delaware-based StubHub Inc., StubHub Canada Ltd., Delaware-based viagogo Entertainment Inc. and Switzerland-based viagogo GmbH. They’re all subsidiaries of StubHub Holdings, Inc.
Mark Gallagher, on March 7, 2026, purchased two sets of tickets to the June 18 Canada vs. Qatar match in Vancouver for $11,407.11 and $2,011.28. That included fees of $2,442.51 and $441.01, respectively.
The same day, he also paid $5,765.15 for two tickets to the June 24 Canada vs. Switzerland match in Vancouver. That included a fee of $1,240.36.
None of the purchase confirmations included exact seat numbers.
The two Qatar tickets that cost $2,011.28 were listed as “Category 2” without specifying a section, row or seat number, while the other two Qatar tickets specified section 244 and row 1, but not the seat number. The Switzerland tickets only specified a section and row.
Gallagher was notified on June 14 that the two Qatar tickets that cost $11,407.11 were ready for delivery with instructions on how to obtain them. However, when he followed the instructions, he was unable to obtain them. He contacted StubHub’s helpline and he was told they would be available the next day with instructions once again. They weren’t available the next day despite following the instructions.
He contacted the help line via phone and chat multiple times in the days leading up to the match and was told by staff in locations in Mexico, India and other countries that his file had been “escalated” and would be available the “next day.” In the day before the event, he was told his tickets would be available within “two to three hours.”
Gallagher stayed online until about 4 a.m. the day of the Qatar match, but the tickets never materialized. Shortly before the match started, StubHub help line staff said there were no tickets as promised.
The lawsuit claims that StubHub didn’t provide alternative seats comparable to the tickets Gallagher purchased “despite there being comparable tickets available.”
The lawsuit alleges that the defendants “implemented a scheme to sell event tickets they either knew did not exist when advertised, or were procured in breach of the laws of the respective place where an event would occur,” according to the news release from Westpoint Law Group. It also claims that the defendants “provided a guarantee, at least parts of which they knew would not or could not be honoured.”
The suit also alleges that the defendants knowingly advertised tickets for sale “that they knew, or ought to have known,” were acquired through software that is “designed to circumvent equitable ticket buying processes.”
Gallagher, the lawsuit says, “reasonably relied” on StubHub’s guarantee “but was not provided with comparable tickets, despite those being available and advertised as such on the defendants’ websites and apps.”
It adds that if Gallagher knew that StubHub didn’t have possession or control of the tickets, or was unable to deliver them, then he wouldn’t have bought the tickets.
The lawsuit says that StubHub charges “significant fees to buyers and sellers of tickets,” but its ‘FanProtect Guarantee’ promises consumers “You will get your tickets in time for the event” or “Your tickets will be valid for entry.” But the lawsuit adds that despite the assurances, StubHub “regularly declines to honour the Guarantee.”
The suit adds that StubHub should know that “at least some” of the tickets it offers on its website did not exist when made available to purchase. It claims StubHub advertised and allowed speculative 2026 FIFA World Cup tickets before any were actually released.
Gallagher is seeking a declaration from StubHub that they have contravened the Business Practices and Consumer Protection Act and the Ticket Sales Act, and that class members are entitled to monetary damages and/or restitution. He’s also seeking general and special damages, among other relief.
When the purchased tickets are unavailable, StubHub “does not provide comparable or better tickets” and instead “knowingly provides inferior tickets and/or refuses to offer refunds.”
Proposed class action members are people who purchased a resale ticket for an event held in B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan, Quebec or Ontario and whose ticket never materialized through any of the defendants or who were provided with a different ticket than the one purchased since March 31, 2025.
The lawsuit was filed in B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver on July 15.
StubHub has not yet filed a response. Responses must be filed within 21 days if the defendants live in Canada or 49 days if they reside elsewhere.
The allegations have not yet been proven in court.