FIFA is facing a backlash over ticket prices for the 2026 World Cup, with the cheapest tickets for the final costing more than £3,000.
Ticket prices were announced on Thursday, representing an overall increase of almost 500 percent compared to the World Cup in Qatar three years ago.
The Football Supporters Association (FSA) called on the FA to challenge FIFA over the pricing, which the FSA said was a “scandal” and a “laughable insult” to the average fan.
The tournament will be held in the United States, Mexico and Canada next summer, but fans are already facing hefty travel and lodging costs.
How much do World Cup tickets cost?
The cheapest tickets for the final, should England reach that stage, are between $4,185 (£3,120) and $8,680 (£6,471) for England Supporters Travel Club members.
The Scottish FA confirmed the prices allocated by the Participants’ Association (PMA) and revealed that the cheapest tickets for the opening game against Haiti in Boston range from $180 (£134) to $500 (£373).
Tickets for Scotland’s second leg against Morocco, also in Boston, start from as low as $220 (£164), while tickets for Scotland’s final group game against Brazil in Miami cost at least $265 (£198).
Football Supporters Europe (FSE) said that based on the information it had received so far, fans would have had to pay just over £6,000 to watch all of their team’s games from the opening game to the final through their PMA allocation. This is five times the amount paid for the previous final in Qatar.
FIFA also announced ticket prices for the latest general lottery sales phase, which is open to all fans until January.
Tickets for group matches range from $140 (£104) to $2,735 (£2,046). In the knockout phase, Round of 32 is priced from $190 (£142) to $790 (£591), Round of 16 is priced from $220 (£164) to $980 (£733), Quarter-finals are priced from $535 (£400) to $1,775 (£1,327), and $905 (£677) to $3,295. Semi-finals are priced at (£2,465) and finals range from $4,185 (£3,130) to $8,680 (£6,493).
All tickets can also be bought and sold on the official resale platform, with FIFA receiving a 30% commission.
Why are ticket prices so high?
The FSE said that rather than adopting a standard price for all group matches, pricing appeared to have been calculated “based on vague criteria such as the perceived attractiveness of the matches”.
Dynamic pricing is used in some stages of World Cup ticket sales. However, the governing body confirmed that this does not apply to this vote. The price displayed at the beginning of the window will remain the same at the end.
The official bid for the 2026 World Cup says the cheapest tickets during the tournament will range from $21 (£15) to $128 (£96).
Tickets for the Euro 2024 final in Berlin between England and Spain were available from £83.
What does FIFA say?
FIFA declined to comment after announcing World Cup ticket prices, but said it had received 5 million ticket requests in 24 hours, “underscoring the surge in global demand.”
FIFA’s position regarding ticket prices has always been that FIFA is a non-profit organization and that the proceeds from ticket sales are reinvested in football.
What was your reaction?
The FSA said the prices proposed for England Supporters Travel Club (ESTC) members were “scandalous” and “too much for the many supporters who passionately and loyally follow their national team at home and abroad”.
“Everything we feared about the direction in which FIFA wants to take the game has been confirmed. Gianni Infantino only sees supporter loyalty as something to be used for profit,” the newspaper said.
“This is a tournament the world should celebrate, where fans from all over the world come together for the love of football. FIFA has decided that the money and the elite who can afford it will decide everything.”
“For FIFA, loyalty is not about hard-working fans who travel thousands of miles to cheer on their teams in qualifiers across the continent. A game that should be for everyone is now only for those who can afford it.”
Football Supporters Europe (FSE) described FIFA’s approach as a “monumental betrayal” of fans.
“European soccer supporters are stunned by the exorbitant ticket prices FIFA has imposed on its most loyal supporters for next year’s FIFA World Cup,” it said in a statement.
“This is a monumental betrayal of World Cup tradition and ignores the contribution of supporters to the World Cup spectacle.
“We call on FIFA to immediately halt the sale of PMA tickets and, in consultation with all affected parties, to review ticket prices and category allocation until a solution is found that respects the tradition, universality and cultural importance of the World Cup.”
In a post on X, England fan group Free Lions said it supported FSE’s statement, adding that these were “shocking prices that far exceed the already high costs we suspected.”
The Scottish Football Supporters’ Association (SFSA) called on national associations to “hold FIFA to account” over ticket prices.
SFSA chief executive John McClain said Scottish Football Association president Mike Mullaney, who was recently appointed FIFA finance chairman, was ideally placed to “express the widespread disappointment of Scottish fans, and indeed fans around the world, with ticket prices in some cases up to five times higher than in Qatar.”
The Association of Tartan Army Clubs (ATAC) said the costs were “disgraceful and disgusting” and the fact that FIFA was charging refund fees to fans who booked the knockout stages meant it was “squeezing every last penny from disillusioned supporters”.
world cup draw
Group A: Mexico, South Korea, South Africa, Republic of Ireland/Denmark/North Macedonia/Czech Republic
Group B: Canada, Switzerland, Qatar, Wales/Northern Ireland/Italy/Bosnia and Herzegovina
Group C: Brazil, Morocco, Scotland, Haiti
Group D: USA, Australia, Paraguay, Turkey/Romania/Slovakia/Kosovo
Group E: Germany, Ecuador, Ivory Coast, Curacao
Group F: Netherlands, Japan, Tunisia, Poland/Ukraine/Sweden/Albania
Group G: Belgium, Iran, Egypt, New Zealand
Group H: Spain, Uruguay, Saudi Arabia, Cape Verde
Group I: France, Senegal, Norway, Iraq, or Bolivia/Suriname
Group J: Argentina, Austria, Algeria, Jordan
Group K: Portugal, Colombia, Uzbekistan, Democratic Republic of the Congo, or Jamaica/New Caledonia
Group L: England, Croatia, Panama, Ghana
Main dates of the World Cup
Group Stage: June 11th-27th
Round of 32: June 28th to July 3rd
Round 16: July 4-7
Quarterfinals: July 9th-11th
Semi-finals: July 14th-15th
3rd place match (“Bronze Final”): July 18th
Last day: July 19th
