EXCLUSIVE: Over 17 hours to get to England World Cup match. Tell us your gruelling World Cup journey stories: [email protected]
England superfan Steve Jackson took more than 17 hours to get from New York to Atlanta on a bus.
The gruelling journey saw Steve come off the coach exhausted when it finally reached Atlanta. Steve, 62, was among the first supporters to arrive in the searingly hot city. He spoke to the Mirror at Atlanta bus station.
He smiled: “That was an absolute nightmare – a total nightmare. I left New York at 6pm and just arrived here at 11.30am.
“I didn’t get much sleep – it was so uncomfortable. There wasn’t a charging point for my phone. There were three changes of buses and we had seven pick ups.
“I’m now going to have a lie down and will definitely have a couple of beers later.” Steve, from Bournemouth, Dorset saved a fortune by travelling by bus.
One-way flights from New York to Atlanta were up to £700. The extortionate cost of following England at the World Cup is punishing the “working class man and woman”, he said.
Fans said the price of tickets, hotels and travel was just too much. It’s been noticeable that many of the fans who have flown over to the US are older and better paid than those attending some previous tournaments.
Gary Taylor said the prices were just “unfair”. He’s one of the lucky few getting a final ticket for £46, but he and girlfriend, Jo Lewis, had to fork out £3,170 for hers.
Gary, 64, a successful estate agent is one of the Football Association’s “top cappers”, so is one of 500 guaranteed low prices. But every other single England supporter is splashing out thousands of pounds on tickets.
He said: “Fifa are taking the average fan for granted. People just can’t afford these prices. They’re disgustingly high.
“Once this tournament is over there must be a full look at how they can cut ticket prices for the 2030 tournament. They really are punishing the working class man and woman.”
The couple, Spurs fans from Harold Wood, Essex, were spending weeks criss-crossing the United States and Mexico, supporting Thomas Tuchel’s men.
Alan Thomas, 67, from Reading, Berks said: “This must be the last tournament that Fifa can get away with this. I know Gianni Infantino is being looked at by various authorities and it’s time for change. The prices have risen so much since Qatar four years ago – it’s got to stop.”