With 100 days to go until the start of the tournament, the appetite for tickets to the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada is reaching fever pitch despite eye-watering prices that have fans crying amid global unrest following the US-Israeli attack on Iran.
Along with the war against Iran – a country that plans to play its World Cup group stage matches in the US – heavy-handed immigration crackdowns in the US and violence that erupted near host city Guadalajara after the death of Mexico’s most wanted drug cartel leader are worrying fans.
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“I’m afraid I won’t be allowed into the country. I’ve decided to fly to Canada but not to the USA,” German football fan Tom Roeder told the Reuters news agency.
“At least I don’t think the issue of war with Iran will reach North America, at least not in a way that affects us personally.”
FIFA, which did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment, said around 2 million tickets were sold in the first two sales phases and demand was so intense that World Cup tickets were oversubscribed more than 30 times.
The most expensive tickets for the opening game go for around $900 and for the final more than $8,000 while tickets for matches involving major nations usually cost at least $200. The final price was $2,000 for the cheapest tickets and $8,680 for the best seats – that’s $143,750 for a class three seat for the July 19 game in New Jersey, 41 times its original face value of $3,450, before FIFA’s official resale site takes into account.
The World Cup is no stranger to political and social tensions surrounding host nations.
Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum said there was “no risk” to fans coming into the country, and Adrian Nunez Corte, leader of Spain’s fan union Unipes, said the situation had not affected willingness to buy tickets.
“Obviously, it causes concern, but some Spanish fans who live in the area have helped calm things down after the alarming early hours,” Carte said.
“There is no warning regarding US immigration policy, but people are taking seriously the preparation of necessary visas to avoid problems, especially because some fans will travel between the US and Mexico due to the match schedule.”
The buzz surrounding the tournament in North America is unprecedented.
“Demand for the 2026 World Cup in the USA, Canada and Mexico is the strongest I have ever experienced,” said Michael Edgley, director of Australia’s Green and Gold Army Travel.
“I think FIFA will make a record amount of money. There is no question.
“This World Cup will be a huge financial success, and the beneficiaries will be the member federations.”
But such popularity comes with a price.
Geography adds another layer of complexity as the tournament spans 16 host cities across three countries, making it more challenging and expensive for fans looking to follow their teams.
“The cost of tickets is a major drawback, particularly affecting the number of matches each fan attends, as well as the distance between venues and the costs involved,” Carte said.
The secondary ticket market has skyrocketed
Sticker shock is even more apparent this year, especially with the large resale market where tickets are sold for more than face value, which is legal in the US and Canada.
FIFA has defended the ticketing model.
“Unlike the entities behind profit-driven third-party ticket marketplaces, FIFA is a not-for-profit organisation,” the spokesperson said.
“The revenue generated by the FIFA World Cup 2026 ticket sales model has been reinvested into the global development of football. … FIFA expects to reinvest more than 90 percent of its budgeted investment into the game for the 2023-2026 cycle.”
Mehdi Salem, vice-president of French football fans’ association Les Barraudières du Sport, said its members were looking at a 200 percent increase in 2018 over what the French federation and FIFA told them were prices.
The price pain is so severe that Salem’s association, which has about 400 members, will have only 100 at the tournament — a factor that has contributed to the dramatic drop in ticket prices and the political landscape in the US.
“We feel that this World Cup is not really the World Cup of the people but the World Cup of the elite,” Salem added.
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