'Messi Mania' means prices for CF Montreal tickets are sky high and fans are angry

Two CF Montreal supporters' groups are taking issue with the rise in ticket prices with "Messi Mania" coming to the city this spring.

Inter Miami and Lionel Messi — the global icon who took North American soccer by storm with his Florida arrival last summer — are scheduled to visit Montreal's Stade Saputo for a Major League Soccer game on May 11.

Supporters' group 1642MTL released a statement Wednesday morning on X platform, formerly known as Twitter, stating the club intends to charge $449 plus taxes in the designated supporters' section in the stadium's east end — more than 10 times the price of any other match, they say.

CF Montreal announced on Jan. 18 that season tickets — starting at $444 — had sold out for the first time since the club joined MLS in 2012, making up 15,000 of Stade Saputo's 20,801 capacity. The club then released a six-game bundle — which included Inter Miami's visit — starting at $750. That package sold out on Feb. 14.

CF Montreal single-match tickets go on pre-sale Friday before being released to the general public Saturday.

"We understand that the situation is special and that the high demand for tickets justifies an increase in price. However, we are disappointed that the club did not make a gesture of goodwill to offer tickets at a reasonable price to the groups of supporters who accompanied the team when the stadium was sometimes half full," Simon Carignan, co-ordinator of 1642MTL, said in a statement.

"It would have been a nice gesture of recognition allowing the supporters already present in the section to be able to bring additional supporters to encourage CFMTL. The club made the choice to put dollars before loyalty, and that's regrettable."

CF Montreal did not wish to comment on the