The children have returned to Germany to see England play

The 23 pupils from Mayville High School in Portsmouth were among 400 youngsters caught up in the alleged fraud.

They all paid about �400 for their trip last weekend but the tickets they were promised never showed up.

Fifa came up with tickets after talks with the government and Portsmouth FC have paid the hotel and travel costs.

The Portsmouth pupils will watch England play Ecuador on Sunday.

Martin Castle, the deputy head teacher at Mayville, told the BBC: "They're very excited and they're very grateful for everybody's efforts to get us to come back.

The children have returned to Germany to see England play

"We're really lucky I think is the best way of describing it - that's the staff and the children and just the school in general feel that we've had a bit of good luck and people have worked very hard and Portsmouth Football Club have been fantastic."

Pupils from Worcestershire, Oxfordshire, Dorset, Lincolnshire and Suffolk were also affected by the alleged fraud.

Tickets have also been secured for the other children who are due to travel out to Germany to watch a game next weekend.

Thames Valley Police said the deception being investigated involved a total sum of about �60,000 and that several other lines of inquiry are still being pursued.

A 38-year-old man and a woman in her 40s, both of Slough, Berkshire, who were arrested on suspicion of deception have been released on police bail.