For 25-year-old Prasanth Varma Kottapalli, the FIFA World Cup was supposed to be the trip of a lifetime.

A B. Tech graduate and football enthusiast from KPHB Colony, Mr. Prasanth and two of his friends had spent months talking about travelling to Canada to watch the world’s biggest sporting spectacle from the stands rather than on a television screen.

Like countless fans planning international travel around the FIFA World Cup, Mr. Prasanth turned to the internet.

He began searching online for match tickets, travel arrangements and visa assistance. Amid the flood of advertisements and websites, he came across a company called Envitech Solutions and Technologies Pvt. Ltd., which claimed it could facilitate visas and assist travellers heading to the tournament.

Seeing an opportunity to simplify the process, Mr. Prasanth submitted an enquiry.

Soon afterwards, he received a call from a person claiming to represent the company. According to investigators, the conversations appeared professional and convincing. The caller assured him that the company would handle the visa process and help complete the necessary formalities required for the trip.

Excited by the prospect of finally watching the FIFA World Cup live, Mr. Prasanth and his friends began making payments towards visa processing and related charges through cash deposits, UPI transactions and credit card payments.

To make the process appear legitimate, the accused provided a ‘passport collection letter’.

Weeks later, Mr. Prasanth became increasingly anxious to know the status of his visa application. Following the fraudster’s advice and holding the letter in his hand, Mr. Prasanth approached the embassy in Financial District to seek an update.

Officials informed him that the document he had been given was not genuine. Further verification revealed that no application had ever been filed in his name with Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).

The visa process he believed he was paying for did not exist. By then, Mr. Prasanth had lost ₹5,03,829.

Based on his complaint, the cyber crime wing of Cyberabad police registered a case and are working to identify the accused, trace the diverted funds and gather digital evidence.

“The modus operandi largely remains the same, but fraudsters cleverly mould their approach according to ongoing events. During the IPL season, we saw several fake ticket scams. Now, with the FIFA World Cup, fraudsters are targeting football fans who are eager to travel abroad and watch matches,” said Cyberabad DCP T. Sai Manohar.

In Hyderabad, the FIFA frenzy is hard to miss. Across Raidurgam, Jubilee Hills and Gachibowli, metro and flyover pillars have been transformed into giant football canvases, with murals of players in action and vibrant tournament-themed artwork bringing the World Cup atmosphere to the city’s streets.

The interest in fact has surged across India. Searches related to FIFA, match tickets and tournament travel have surged, with several keywords recording more than a ten-fold increase in interest, according to Google Trends.

The officer urged citizens to exercise caution while booking tickets, travel packages or visa services online and to verify the credentials of agencies and consultants before making payments.