Markets 
Mickey D’s diners were unhappy with this meal.
McDonald’s has issued a temporary upcharge that has led to major upset among loyal customers.
The beef began when a disgruntled customer took to Reddit to share that when they ordered a Happy Meal, they were charged an additional $1.79 for the fast-food chain’s current toy offering, a World Cup-themed Squishmallows plush.
“Never in my life have I ever had to pay extra for a Happy Meal toy to be included,” the customer railed. “Is this shrinkflation?”
For reference, a standard Happy Meal includes an entree, typically a burger or chicken nuggets, a choice of apple slices or fries, a drink and a toy.
Happy Meal prices vary by location, but never before has a promotional toy incurred an added cost.
The original Reddit poster, who placed her order at an undisclosed Canadian location, assumed that the upcharge was an error and contacted McDonald’s customer service to dispute it.
The burger giant responded with an email justifying the markup.
“While a standard Happy Meal toy is included in the meal price, the additional charge you encountered was for the limited‑time FIFA promotional toy. These collectible toys are part of a special campaign and carry an added cost compared to the regular Happy Meal toy. We regret that this was not made clearer at the time of your purchase.”
As a gesture of “goodwill,” the golden arches credited the customer’s account with 10,000 MyMcDonald’s Rewards points.
“We hope this helps make up for your experience and allows you to enjoy your rewards on a future visit,” the company concluded.
The Happy Meal vigilante noted that there is no toy alternative to the World Cup plushie.
“Basically, our children either don’t get a toy, or the parents have to fork out extra money to buy a COMPLETE happy meal for their child,” the poster lamented.
Fellow Reddit users added their voices to the chorus of disdain and disbelief.
“We’ve gone a few times and haven’t gotten this,” wrote one user. “I just did a mock order in the app and went to check out and didn’t see it. That’s really shady if some stores are doing that.”
The original poster shared an update explaining that only one location, not the company en masse, is charging for the FIFA Happy Meal toys. However, McDonald’s is standing by the charge and the franchise location, saying the charge was appropriate.
“I’m still trying to clear things up with them, saying it was not a valid charge,” they explained.
Others wondered if the upcharge was a red herring for future price changes.
“‘That seems messed up, especially since it’s just a small plushie. Does this imply that any time they do plushies it’s going to be another jump in price?” questioned one commenter.
A McDonald’s employee chimed in with what may be the most probable explanation for the upcharge.
“We added the option to sell the FIFA Cup with any meal due to terrible sales of the FIFA adult meal. It looks like you were inadvertently charged for the Adult collectible cup,” they posted.
Said collectible cups are branded with the famous faces of the world’s greatest soccer stars: David Beckham, Thierry Henry, Lamine Yamal, Christian Pulisic, Alphonso Davies, Santiago Gimenez, Son Heung-Min, and Ronaldinho.
Several of the players feature in a promotional video posted to social media last month, with Beckham himself pulling up to a McDonald’s drive-through window for his World Cup Meal, Henry catching side-eye from Grimace, and Heung-Min sharing a cheers with the Hamburglar.
Meanwhile, for the latest incarnation of its iconic Happy Meal, McDonald’s partnered with Squishmallow toys to turn FIFA mascots into 23 collectible squat plushies decked out in soccer jerseys.
“Hard to pick a fave in this Squishmallows huddle puddle,” the fast-food chain captioned an Instagram post.
However, one commenter noted that the toy’s quality did not justify the price hike.
“I don’t understand why Squishmallow would put their name on such a poorly made product.”
My guess would be global brand exposure and a major payday, pal.
While the Happy Meal may be fielding its share of online hate, others have hacked the system to make it work for them.
Last year, a woman went viral for promoting a simple way to score a Happy Meal at McDonald’s for nearly $3 cheaper than the original price.
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