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By most measures, Canadian right back Alistair Johnston had a relatively successful 2026 FIFA World Cup. Indeed, the 27-year-old defender started all five of his country’s games at the tournament, helping them to keep two clean sheets before eventually being knocked out in the round of 16 by Morocco. However, his travel plans after the World Cup did not pan out so well, as he detailed on social media.
US-based ultra-low-cost carrier Frontier Airlines was the specific subject of Johnston’s ire, with the Celtic and former Montreal and Nashville star alleging that the airline flew him to the wrong city and lost his bags. His viral post on X, formerly known as Twitter, even garnered a response from one of his flight’s fellow passengers, who was able to provide further details on what was a difficult journey.
A Bad End To One Player’s World Cup
Alistair Johnston appears to have taken his last flight with Frontier Airlines, with the Canada player recently saying online that he had “learned his lesson” after a disastrous flight with the US-based ultra-low-cost carrier. He implored his 57,000+ X followers to “never fly with Frontier, even if it’s the only direct flight available,” adding that they should “look for multi-stop redeye flights before flying with them.”
If Johnston’s choice of emojis is anything to go by, the frustrating situation was clearly one of those where if you don’t laugh, you’ll cry. He concluded by saying that “I’m still not sure where my bags are, and I’m in the wrong city somehow.” While further details of the case remain relatively sparse, the trip clearly represented a frustrating end to the tournament, and one not befitting of a world-class athlete.
Simple Flying has reached out to Frontier Airlines for further information on this matter. We will update our coverage upon receiving a statement from the carrier.
One Of Johnston’s Fellow Passengers Relayed Further Details
A short while after Johnston’s post landed online and started to gain traction, one of the other passengers on his flight, who had taken the time to take a picture with the Canadian footballer at the gate, posted a reply offering further insight into the frustrating situation. Danny Pham explained that the ordeal “turned a 2.5-hour flight into an eight to nine-hour flight [with] a horrendous delay [of] 14 hours.”
The reason for the added journey time, Pham went on to say, was that he was rebooked onto a connecting itinerary as opposed to the planned direct service with Frontier. He also informed Johnston that his lost bag was “at the original airport,” adding that he saw it on the baggage claim at Raleigh-Durham International Airport (RDU) in the US state of North Carolina with a conspicuous Canada Soccer logo.
As far as lost and delayed bags are concerned, Frontier Airlines’ website advises passengers that they should “report it to a Frontier representative at the airport as soon as possible so we can begin tracking and recovery.” Alternatively, those unable to contact staff in person can instead file claims through an online form. Needless to say, Mr Johnston’s story highlights the risks of checking bags in.
Lost Luggage In The US
With that being said, while these risks do exist, the chances of your checked bags being lost on a given flight remain low. Indeed, Simple Flying has previously reported that approximately seven out of every 1,000 checked bags are lost or mishandled at airports in the US, equating to a proportion of 0.7%. This is also generally an area in which Frontier Airlines has performed well over the past few years.
Indeed, when Simple Flying examined the US airlines with the worst rates of lost luggage in 2025, the carrier was not listed among the four worst offenders (American Airlines, United Airlines, Alaska Airlines, and Delta Air Lines). In recent years, airlines have looked to tackle the issue of lost and mishandled bags by using Apple AirTag trackers, resulting in an impressive 90% reduction in unrecoverable bags.
