Last week, I realized Spain and France were playing in the Euros qualifiers near me, so I got super pumped to grab tickets. Thing is, I’d never bought international football tickets before and had no clue where to start. Here’s exactly how I figured it out step by step.
The Initial Hunt
First, I typed “Spain France tickets” into Google like a total newbie. Big mistake. I got buried under pages of resellers with crazy prices and zero guarantees. Some sites wanted €500 for nosebleed seats! I almost gave up right there.
Then I remembered national teams usually sell through their own associations. I searched for “Spain football official tickets” and bingo! Found their federation’s ticketing portal. Same for the French side – their FA had a section for away games. Bookmarked both immediately.
Registration Headaches
Both sites required creating accounts before seeing ticket availability. Filled all my details – name, address, passport number (they actually verify this later!). Pro tip: use the same email for both accounts because you’ll need purchase confirmations linked to it.
The Spanish portal crashed twice during registration. Typical. When it finally worked, I had to:
- Verify my email with a code
- Set up two-factor authentication
- Confirm my phone number
The Purchase Madness
Ticket sales opened at 10am local time. At 9:58am, I had both FA websites open on different tabs. The Spanish queue system froze immediately. Panic mode!
Switched to the French site instead. Their interface was way smoother. Selected:
- 1 ticket (since mates bailed last minute)
- Category 2 seats behind the goal
- E-ticket delivery option (paper takes weeks!)
Payment was a battle. Tried my Visa card – declined. Mastercard? Nope. Finally worked with PayPal after three attempts. Got that golden confirmation email at 10:17am while the Spanish site was still loading. €180 including fees – way better than reseller scams!
Final Steps & Lesson Learned
The ticket PDF arrived two days later with strict instructions:
- Print it on A4 paper
- Bring the ID used for booking
- No resale allowed (they check names at the gate)
Biggest takeaway? Always go direct through official channels, even if their websites feel ancient. Saved hundreds and dodged fraud nightmares. Now just counting days till kickoff!