Euro 2020: England and Villa fan conned out of £2k for final tickets

Ben Moore, 28, is a lifelong Aston Villa and England fan

An England fan said he had lost £2,000 after he bought fake tickets for the Euro 2020 final.

Aston Villa fan Ben Moore said he was "sceptical" of the offer, but it seemed believable when the seller showed him photos of the tickets.

He agreed to pay £2,000 upfront and a further £2,000 for the second seat on receipt of the tickets.

But a few hours after the money was sent, the seller blocked Mr Moore, 28, on Twitter and "disappeared".

He has reported the incident to his bank and Action Fraud.

"I'd been spamming the UEFA ticket portal for days, like all England fans, but I went through Twitter and came across this guy", he said.

"He showed me the tickets through the app, so I could see pictures and they were quite believable."

The 28-year-old, originally from Birmingham but now living in Banbury in Oxfordshire, said he "doesn't like doing this sort of stuff" and has "never been conned like this".

Ben Moore (pictured with friend and family) successfully managed to get tickets for England's match against Croatia

After sharing his experience on his Villa blog, he said another fan got in touch to say he had been duped by the same person.

"It's not nice, the money is bad, it's horrible," he said.

"I'm disappointed at not being able to go to the game.

"I'm a massive England fan, it's a once in a lifetime opportunity."

He said he used money from his mortgage savings to pay for the tickets, but was relieved he had not paid the full £4,000 asking price for the pair of tickets.

Mr Moore said he has also faced criticism from people online saying he was "stupid".

"I'm very analytical but the messages looked so genuine," he said.

"The deep down disappointment is not actually being able to go to the game. It's a double kick in the teeth."

The BBC has contacted Action Fraud for comment.