Ticket prices raise the question: Will this be the ‘prawn sandwich’ World Cup?

FIFA President Gianni Infantino, visiting the White House in August, presents US President Donald Trump with a ceremonial ticket to the World Cup final. 

FIFA President Gianni Infantino and US President Donald Trump have gleefully described the 2026 World Cup as an event of 104 Super Bowls, and it seems as though the matches are priced accordingly. To watch any of the three host nations play their opening game next summer will cost an average of $1,825, triple the price of Qatar’s opening game in 2022 and almost three-and-a-half times the price of Russia’s first match in 2018.

Globally, soccer fans are furious. Writing on X, the England fan Nigel Seeley, described the prices as “insane.” A dedicated supporter for 30 years, Seeley posted a list of the prices being quoted to the England Supporters Travel Club for each of the eight games they might play, including a price of between $4,185 and $8,860 for the final.

He said, “I think I will be watching the final at home if England reach it. Headed for the groups, hopefully do the quarterfinal and home. I just can’t justify paying that money, it’s a joke.”

Perhaps in response to some of the criticism, FIFA announced on Tuesday a new tier of pricing for some dedicated supporters of each qualified team, allowing certain fans to attend matches for just $60. But, in a confusingly worded statement, it wasn’t clear how many tickets would actually be sold at the reduced price, only that each participating member association would be responsible for allocation.

Soccer is still a developing sport in the US, but despite FIFA’s stated commitment to grow it globally, the Beautiful Game’s world governing body does not seem too concerned about the generally inflated prices. They have reported that 2 million tickets have already been sold and claim “extraordinary global demand” for 20 million more.

At the tournament draw in Washington, DC, Trump praised Infantino, saying, “You’ve set new records on ticket sales, that is an amazing thing. The numbers are beyond any numbers.”

But when the tournament kicks off on June 11 in Mexico City, who will be in attendance? And will the 16 stadiums across Mexico, Canada and the US all be sold out?

If FIFA’s ambitious Club World Cup tournament earlier this summer is any indication, there might be some cause for concern. The games were overpriced and some were played in half-empty stadiums, with large swathes of open seating obvious to the broadcast cameras.