News Focus
- Thousands of tickets remain unsold just days before the tournament kicks off
- New York and New Jersey attorneys general investigate FIFA for allegedly inflating prices
- Resale websites list seats at 64% below official face value
- Only two of nine host nation matches have sold out completely
- Ticket availability fluctuates wildly across official and third-party platforms
The 2026 World Cup is almost here. Yet fans face confusion over ticket costs and availability. FIFA promised a sell-out tournament. Instead, thousands of seats remain empty across all sales platforms.
Prices are dropping fast. Tickets for less popular matches now cost far less than their original price. This is happening on FIFA’s own resale website and other marketplaces like SeatGeek and StubHub.
Legal problems are growing. Last week, attorneys general from New York and New Jersey started official investigations. They want answers about FIFA’s ticket selling methods. Officials accuse the governing body of raising prices artificially and tricking supporters.
The buying process lacked clarity. Fans entered a ballot system without knowing exact prices. Some paid for better seats but received cheaper ones further from the pitch. Others discovered the real cost only when payment was due.
FIFA used variable pricing. This means prices changed at different sales stages based on previous demand. However, the system confused many buyers. Stadium maps changed without warning. New expensive categories appeared in front rows. These cost 50% more than seats just behind them.
Gianni Infantino claimed every match sold out in February. The FIFA president said they kept only a few tickets for last-minute sales. Reality tells a different story.
Big teams like Argentina, Brazil and England will draw crowds. But matches involving smaller nations struggle. Games such as Bosnia-Herzegovina against Qatar show poor sales. Even host nation matches lack buyers. Only two of nine games featuring Canada, Mexico or the United States sold out completely.
The opening match between Mexico and South Africa still offers over 500 seats. Each costs $2,273 (£1,725). This high price puts off many fans.
Independent tracking site TicketData found nearly 74,000 tickets available across 86 matches last Saturday. Numbers changed strangely within hours. They dropped to 32,000, then 22,000 by Tuesday. By Wednesday, they rose again to 37,000. This suggests unusual activity in the ticket system.
FIFA pushes fans toward its official resale platform. The organisation takes 15% commission from both buyers and sellers. However, many tickets appeared on SeatGeek at lower prices. These listings showed patterns suggesting organised selling rather than individual fans offloading spare tickets.
SeatGeek denies working directly with FIFA. The company states it has no partnership with football’s governing body. Yet someone is listing large batches of tickets in specific rows at set prices.
For example, Uzbekistan versus Congo DR shows 60 listings across two blocks. Prices range from $250 to £296. These sit well below the $380 face value. Either many fans lose money, or FIFA tries to shift unsold stock quietly.
Empty seats worry organisers. Each unused ticket means zero income. The sight of half-full stadiums also damages the tournament’s image. BBC Sport checked five low-demand matches. They found lower bowl seats selling 64% below face value. Jordan versus Algeria tickets dropped from $620 to £171 on FIFA’s own site.
The ticket crisis raises serious questions. Will we see empty stands at the biggest World Cup in history? Why did FIFA set prices so high for less attractive fixtures? The answers remain unclear as kick-off approaches.