FIFA faced technical difficulties shortly after resuming World Cup ticket sales on Wednesday. This was a significant moment as the 48-team tournament field was finalized the previous day. The organization did not specify which games or price categories were available when sales opened at 11 a.m. EDT.
Upon opening the sales, many fans found themselves directed into a queue for what FIFA designated as the “last-minute sales phase,” specifically intended for supporters of the six nations that qualified for the tournament on Tuesday. Customers who joined the queue at the start reported lengthy waits, with some still trying to secure tickets more than an hour and a half later. FIFA did not provide an explanation for the misdirection but asserted that by noon, the links were functioning correctly.
Notably, FIFA announced that not all remaining tickets for the 104 matches, scheduled to take place across the U.S., Mexico, and Canada from June 11 to July 19, would be made available at once. Instead, additional tickets would be released on a rolling basis throughout the tournament. This marked the fifth phase of ticket sales, following several previous phases including a Visa presale from September 10-19 and various draws in the months leading up to the current phase.
In this particular sales phase, FIFA introduced a notable change: fans could purchase specific seat locations rather than merely requesting a ticket in a particular category. The organization is implementing dynamic pricing for the tournament, which will span across 11 U.S. cities, alongside three in Mexico and two in Canada. Ticket prices have reportedly ranged from $140 to $8,680, raising concerns about accessibility. Following consumer complaints about high prices, FIFA committed to allocating about 400-700 $60 tickets to each participating national federation for their devoted supporters.
This move towards dynamic pricing has drawn criticism, especially from political representatives. On March 10, a letter signed by 69 Democratic members of Congress criticized FIFA, arguing that such pricing contradicts the organization’s mission to promote inclusive and accessible soccer globally. They contend that the dynamic pricing strategy could lead to unprecedented financial exclusivity and inaccessibility for fans wanting to attend the World Cup.
Additionally, FIFA operates its own ticket resale market, taking a 15% commission from both the buyer and the seller. Following Tuesday's qualifying matches, ticket holders from eliminated teams, including notable nations like Italy and Poland, may seek to resell their purchased tickets as they are no longer able to attend.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino previously remarked that the number of ticket requests received was equivalent to a thousand years' worth of World Cups combined, highlighting the unprecedented demand surrounding the event. While the sheer volume of requests is staggering, it remains uncertain how many are intended for the lower-priced tickets.
Fan groups have raised alarms over the rising costs of resold tickets, leading to at least one formal complaint submitted to the European Commission by a supporter group last month. In response to concerns over the resale market and pricing, Infantino defended FIFA's policies, stating that they are operating within legal commercial activities as outlined by U.S. law. This is contrasted by some European nations that impose restrictions on ticket resale, often mandating that they sell at face value or only through authorized partners.
