subpoenaed

US States react following increasing criticism of football’s global governing body for the pricing of FIFA World Cup 2026.

FIFA faces a subpoena from the ‌states of New York and New Jersey as part of an investigation surrounding ticket pricing and ⁠accuracy of seat locations for the 2026 World Cup.

In a joint news release on Wednesday, New York Attorney General Letitia James and New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport ⁠said prices for the 2026 World Cup matches “far exceeded the prices for any previous World Cup tournament”.

FIFA has detailed the first-time use of “dynamic pricing” to adjust ticket costs based ⁠on demand. Fan complaints and allegations of paying for tickets in one location of the stadium but receiving a less-desirable seat caught the attention of state officials.

When pressed to explain why prices of tickets, which went on sale in October, were so high, FIFA President Gianni Infantino ‌defended the governing body on multiple fronts by pointing to the limited ticket supply for an event with worldwide demand.

The state attorneys general confirmed they are seeking information regarding the general event pricing structure, location pricing structure, seat locations and other details related to the eight World Cup matches scheduled to be played at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, in the United States. The July 19 final as well as group stage matches and early knock-out round games are to be held at MetLife Stadium.

“New ⁠Yorkers have been waiting years for the World Cup to ⁠come to their backyard, and they deserve a fair shot at affordable tickets,” James said in a release. “No one should be manipulated into paying sky-high prices for seats, and fans should be able to trust that the ⁠tickets they purchased will be the ones they receive.”

The investigation seeks to soothe concerns for fans who’ve purchased – or hope to have an ⁠opportunity to purchase – tickets but feel misled about ⁠the final product.

“FIFA has turned buying a ticket to the World Cup into a gauntlet of confusion, fake scarcity and impossibly high prices – all at the expense of consumers and hard-working New Jerseyans,” Davenport said in the statement.

James said ‌watchdogs called on government officials for guidance to resolve disputes from fans who said they had selected a seat in one category of the four available at MetLife Stadium only to be ‌assigned ‌seats farther back from the playing surface.

FIFA contributed to elements of the seating location confusion with the late introduction of a premium ticket option, or “Front Category”, after initial tickets had already been sold.

WASHINGTON — The Justice Department has subpoenaed several witnesses to testify before a federal grand jury in Washington as part of its investigation into former CIA Director John Brennan, three people familiar with the matter said Monday.

The subpoenas were issued in recent days and represent an effort by the Justice Department to press forward with the investigation even as a Florida-based career prosecutor who’d been helping lead the inquiry left the case after expressing doubts about the legal viability of a potential prosecution.

A former Justice Department lawyer who served as a top prosecutor in the 1980s and later supported legal efforts by President Trump to overturn his 2020 election loss has since been sworn in to serve as a special counselor to the attorney general, and is expected to work on the investigation.

The months-old Brennan investigation is one of several criminal probes the Justice Department has opened over the last year against Trump’s perceived adversaries. It centers on one of the Republican president’s chief grievances — a U.S. intelligence community finding that Russia interfered on his behalf during his successful 2016 presidential campaign.

The subpoenas were described by people with knowledge of them who spoke on condition of anonymity to the Associated Press to discuss an ongoing criminal investigation. At least three were said to have been issued, said two of the people. CBS News earlier reported the issuance of subpoenas.

Brennan served as CIA director under President Obama and was in that role when the intelligence community in January 2017 published an assessment detailing Russian interference aimed at helping Trump defeat Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton in 2016. An investigation led by special counsel Robert S. Mueller III concluded that Russia meddled on Trump’s behalf and that his campaign welcomed the assistance, but it did not find sufficient evidence to prove a criminal conspiracy.

The Justice Department last year received a criminal referral from Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio, the Republican chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, alleging that Brennan made false statements before the panel in 2023 about the preparation of the intelligence community assessment. Brennan and his lawyers have vigorously denied any wrongdoing.

The investigation has been unfolding for months in Florida, with investigators having lined up interviews and issued subpoenas for records. The latest subpoenas seek grand jury testimony in Washington, an indication that prosecutors expect they would have to bring any criminal case in Washington since that is where Brennan’s testimony took place.

On Friday, it was revealed that a key national security prosecutor in Florida who’d been handling the investigation, Maria Medetis Long, left the case. She expressed doubts about the case and was removed, another person familiar with the matter said.

The Justice Department since then has tapped Joseph diGenova, 81, a Trump loyalist who served as the U.S. attorney in Washington for part of the 1980s, to serve as a special counselor to the attorney general. He was sworn in Monday in Florida and is expected to work on the Brennan investigation.

DiGenova supported Trump’s false claims that the 2020 election was stolen from him. He made headlines that year when he said Chris Krebs, a top Trump administration cybersecurity official who said the election was not tainted by fraud, should be killed. DiGenova later apologized and a lawsuit filed against him by Krebs was withdrawn.

Tucker writes for the Associated Press. AP writer Alanna Durkin Richer in Washington contributed to this report.