Holiday ticket scams: how to buy concert, game and show tickets without getting burned

What's happened

Tickets to concerts, games and holiday shows make popular gifts, which is why fake tickets are a reliable earner for scammers at this time of year. The scams are simple: a seller takes your money for tickets that don't exist, are fake, or have already been sold to someone else.

In a warning on October 13, 2026, the Better Business Bureau in Wisconsin said scammers use hacked or fake profiles on Facebook, Instagram and Craigslist to advertise tickets they don't have. "Scammers count on that urgency," said the BBB's Lisa Schiller.

The Federal Trade Commission has also warned that fraudsters use paid search results and social media to send people to scam websites, some selling the same seat to several buyers. Its March 2026 alert for World Cup fans said that when tickets are delivered through an official app, "someone selling paper tickets or a screenshot is likely a scammer."

Meanwhile, the FTC's lawsuit against Live Nation and Ticketmaster, which accuses them of letting brokers get around ticket limits, is going ahead: a federal judge in California refused to dismiss it in late September 2026. The companies dispute the claims.

Who's affected

Anyone buying tickets for a sold-out or popular event, and especially anyone buying from a stranger on social media, a classifieds site or a website they found through an ad. Holiday shows, end-of-season football games and big arena tours are common targets because demand is high and people are buying in a hurry.

Fakes often aren't discovered until the gate, when the ticket won't scan. By then the seller has usually vanished.

What it means in dollars: a worked example

This is an illustration, not a real case.

Jamal finds four tickets to a sold-out holiday show on a Facebook post for $90 each, below the $120 they're going for on resale sites. The seller asks for $360 by a payment app, "friends and family," and sends screenshots of the tickets. At the theater, the barcodes have already been used.

Because he paid by payment app, he has little chance of getting the $360 back. Had he paid by credit card through a resale site with a guarantee, he could have claimed a refund from the site or disputed the charge with his card company.

What to do now

1. Start with the official seller. Buy from the venue's box office, the team or show's own site, or the official ticketing partner they link to. Type the address in yourself instead of clicking an ad.
2. If you buy resale, use a site with a guarantee. The BBB suggests accredited resellers and members of the National Association of Ticket Brokers (NATB) that offer a purchase guarantee. Read the guarantee before you buy.
3. Pay by credit card. Avoid cash, debit, wire transfers, gift cards and peer-to-peer apps. Under the Fair Credit Billing Act, you can dispute a credit card charge for things you didn't get, in writing, within 60 days of the statement it appears on.
4. Get tickets transferred to your own account. A screenshot or PDF can be copied and sold many times. Be wary of listings without a section, row and seat, and of sellers who want to move the deal off the platform.
5. Check the total price. Since May 12, 2025, the FTC's fees rule has required ticket sellers to show the total price up front, including mandatory fees. If the price jumps at checkout, walk away.

Ways to save

TicketNetwork is a resale marketplace for concerts, sports and theater, where sellers set prices that can be above face value. When we checked on October 27, 2026, its promotions page offered $25 off orders of $150 or more with code TNTIX25. It says every order is covered by its 100% money-back guarantee.

If you're buying attraction tickets for a holiday trip, buying direct cuts out the risk of a fake. CityPASS sells bundled attraction tickets on its own site, and we looked at its New York CityPASS earlier this season.

FAQs

What should I do if my tickets turn out to be fake?

Contact the platform you bought from and claim under its guarantee. If you paid by credit card, dispute the charge with your card company. Then report the seller to the platform, to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and to BBB Scam Tracker. For bigger losses, file a police report too.

What are speculative tickets?

Some resale listings are for tickets the seller doesn't own yet, hoping to buy them later. An FTC staff report found many buyers don't realize this, and learn the truth only when the order is canceled. Read the listing carefully.

Is it a scam if the price is above face value?

Not necessarily. Resale prices for popular events are often above face value. A price far below what everyone else is charging is the bigger warning sign.

Sources: FOX6: Wisconsin BBB on ticket scams (October 13, 2026), FTC: how to make your World Cup experience scam free (March 17, 2026), FTC: Rule on Unfair or Deceptive Fees FAQs, FTC: "That's the Ticket" staff report, Pollstar: BOTS Act applies to Ticketmaster, judge rules (October 1, 2026), TicketNetwork: promotions