How The Hunt For A World Cup Final Ticket Is Like Running A Business!!

Luzhniki Stadium, Moscow

Caught up in the euphoria that England would get to the FIFA World Cup Final 2018 in Moscow, last year and a week before the final itself, I deliberated to go watch it live and to tick off a bucket list item.

Having seen how wonderfully Russia was being portrayed on TV, with all the fans, great football, warm weather, etc and knowing a few Russian friends, I decided to go for it.

It was also a challenge for myself, as anyone who knows me well, knows that I don’t like crowds and I don’t enjoy uncertainty. Both of which I would need to endure.

With FAN ID (conveniently doubling up as a visa for Russia), flight and accommodation arranged (leveraging my Russian contacts), I spent the next few days prior to flying out, regularly checking the FIFA website for a last-minute ticket for the final (travel concierge companies and re-seller websites were charging silly amounts of money).

My back-up plan was to get a ticket locally somehow or to, as a last resort, soak up the atmosphere in one of the FIFA fan parks. England being knocked out at the semi-final stage did not dampen my spirit, as I continued to hunt for a ticket.

“The biggest adventure you can take is to live the life of your dreams.” Oprah Winfrey

My first full day in Moscow, the day before the final, I was still checking the FIFA website. A Moscow taxi-driver had offered me his spare category 3 ticket for $2000.00, but I had politely declined (seemed most of the taxi drivers had a spare ticket to sell).

I had set myself a budget to spend no more than 10% above face value. Throughout the day, I’d check the FIFA website anytime I could get access to free WIFI (huge data roaming charges were not something I wanted to come back home to).

As I was in Moscow for the very first time, I ‘had’ to do all the touristy things. Thankfully I had a friend to show me around (again met through my Russian connections). Enjoyable as it was, it did detract from the ticket-hunting.

Saturday evening spent around Red Square with the multitude of fans (many also seeking tickets) still did not provide that elusive ticket. The first day ended without a ticket in hand.

“Many are stubborn in pursuit of the path they have chosen, few in pursuit of the goal.” Friedrich Nietzsche

The plan for the day of the final was to give the FIFA website more time in the morning, to then meet a coaching client for lunch and to then allow enough time in the afternoon to get to the stadium to ask around for a spare ticket.

I got to Luzhniki Stadium for about 2:30pm (a little later than planned) and I came across one of the FIFA support staff. I asked if there were any last-minute tickets still available, and the staff member mentioned that there may be some at the official FIFA ticketing office some 25 mins away on the Metro.

I confidently backtracked to the FIFA ticketing center only to be confronted by a huge crowd (hundreds) lining up to do the same. There were also many ticket touts (ticket scalpers) selling tickets in among everyone. An official told me that all tickets were now sold out (and yet people were still queuing).

“Life is a series of experiences, each one of which makes us bigger, even though sometimes it is hard to realize this. For the world was built to develop character, and we must learn that the setbacks and grieves which we endure help us in our marching onward.” Henry Ford

I was in despair and getting anxious. I could actually sense the change in my breathing. The thought of watching the final in a fan park was no longer an appealing concession. Time was running out. It was about 2.5 hours before kickoff.

I scolded myself for not spending more time on finding a ticket the day before. What could I have done differently? The price of a ticket from the touts had come down from $2000 to anywhere between $1300 to $1500. But it was still more than I was willing to pay. Some touts were willing to negotiate.

But I had a bigger problem; if a seller agreed on a price for a single ticket, where was I going to get the cash from? A huge oversight on my part and flaw in my plan ‘to assume’ that I might be able to pay electronically (I am a complete novice at this). What was I thinking!!

The ATM would not allow more than the equivalent of $150 in Russian Rubles in a single transaction (and again there was a line for the ATM). I resorted to asking the touts if they would accept PayPal. I was laughed at. “Cash only!”, were their replies.

Moving from tout to tout without any luck, I eventually heard an American-accented voice offering tickets for sale. A New-Yorker selling excess tickets on behalf of a travel agency. On building some rapport, I asked if he would accept PayPal? “Yeah, we can do that”, were magic words to my ears. We agreed on a price for a ticket.

Other touts looked on in amusement and bewilderment as we transacted. I had my prized possession. A ticket to the FIFA World Cup Final (2 hours to kick off). I was at the stadium 90 before kick-off and very much enjoyed what was an amazing evening!!

But the best was yet to come. At half-time, through a serendipitous encounter, I was given (free of charge) a Category 1 ticket just a few rows from pitch-side, where I enjoyed the rest of the match. A story for another time!!

“Serendipity always rewards the prepared.” Katori Hall

Many things had to go right for me to be successful and to get to the final. As the 2 days unfolded, I couldn’t help thinking about the analogy of being in business. Like in business, there are certain factors that need to be followed to be in with a reasonable chance of success:

1. Have a plan or a strategy — You may have a business goal (mine was to get to watch the final), but many ways to get to it. Use the resources you have available and leverage your network. Break the plan up into manageable steps. I used my Russian contacts, local knowledge and identified actionable parts of my plan.
2. Execute the plan — You can spend most of your time preparing for the time to be right, but the most important thing is to start. If I’d relied on having a ticket to the final in my hand first, I would never have made it out to Moscow. You need to take steps and to change them when required. As Mark Hurd so rightly says, “Without execution, ‘vision’ is just another word for hallucination.”
3. Focus — It’s important to not lose sight of your goal. There will be many distractions. I was distracted by being a tourist in a new city and wanting to spend time with friends. I was fortunate, as in hindsight this worked to my advantage, as it gave me local knowledge and the confidence to locate the FIFA ticketing office. Had I not spent so much time on the Metro the day before, I may have stayed at the Stadium on first arriving to try my luck there.
4. Enjoy the journey — One thing I always tell my clients about achieving their goals is to enjoy the journey. That is the one thing I wanted to make sure I did whilst I was in Moscow. And with any journey, routes can change. So, if the business plan is not working, you need to be willing to try something different. Have the courage to change your route!! My poor return on the FIFA website, made me try alternate paths.
5. Hustle — From first arriving in Moscow, I was being offered tickets but at prices over my budget. It took willpower to not succumb to the pressure of getting a ticket that way. How sure was I that I would get a ticket within my price range in time? In business, you may get an offer, but it may not be viable. You need to willing to walk away from a bad deal. You need to hustle and not be hustled.
6. Timing — It is all about timing; how the market looks, buyer or seller’s market, etc. I had a feeling that the nearer I left it to kick off, the more likely I would get a ticket at my price. But that had its own risks. Understand your risks and what the contingency will be if time runs out and your plan fails. Though not ideal, mine would have been the fan park.
7. Luck — Being far away from the stadium at the ticketing centre with no tickets on sale, 2 hours before kickoff, with not enough cash in my pocket and ticket prices out of my budget, no one would have given me a chance of getting to the final. As Mike Tyson once famously said, “Everyone has a plan ‘till they get punched in the mouth.” No matter how well planned your strategy is, there are always factors out of your control. But as with anything and in business, you make your own luck. When your desire is strong enough, when you move forward to what you want, you can just end up exactly where you need to be with the person you need to be with to get what you need have.

I got to see a World Cup Final, I got to experience an amazing city (can’t wait to return one day) and got time to spend some quality time with friends. I also found a new sense of enjoyment with large crowds and embraced the uncertainty of not having a ticket till so late.

So, what would I have done differently? Probably made up my mind sooner to go to the World Cup Final when tickets were first made available for sale, and to have been in better chance of getting them online.

But life isn’t always that easy. Plans can change from minute to minute. I think it all worked out the way it needed to. No regrets!!

“Success is no accident. It is hard work, perseverance, learning, studying, sacrifice and most of all, love of what you are doing or learning to do.” Pele

Dr Rakish Rana is a warm and caring executive life coach who transforms you to become the best version of yourself, by instilling confidence & self-belief and focussing on general well-being.