With just over 30 days remaining until the 2026 men’s FIFA World Cup kicks off across the United States, Canada and Mexico on June 11, the majority of the tournament’s group stage matches still have tickets available to the general public – but steep pricing has left many soccer fans frustrated and locked out of attending.
FIFA has been releasing tickets in staggered sales phases since last September, and currently, remaining seats are listed through the governing body’s official website in a dedicated “last-minute sales” portal. Prices vary dramatically based on seating tier, with premium Front Category 1 seats commanding the highest costs and Category 4 being the most affordable entry point. The lowest current price for general sale group stage tickets is $380, a rate available for seven different matches, including the group stage clash between World Cup first-time qualifier Curacao and Ivory Coast, hosted in Philadelphia.
Even with this baseline entry price, cost disparities between matches and seating tiers are striking. For example, a Category 3 seat for the United States’ opening group game against Paraguay in Los Angeles currently lists for $1,120 – nearly three times the $380 price tag of a Category 2 seat for the Austria vs. Jordan group fixture. The most expensive general sale ticket for any group stage match tops out at $4,105 for the US-Paraguay game, with dozens of other group stage matches carrying average ticket prices around the $2,000 mark. Other high-priced group fixtures include Argentina’s match against Austria at $2,925 for top-tier seats, Ecuador vs. Germany at $2,550, Uruguay vs. Spain at $2,520, and England’s clash with Croatia at $2,505. Top-tier tickets for defending champion Lionel Messi’s Argentina side range between $2,475 and $2,925, while Brazil’s tickets run from $2,280 to $2,310 for premium seating.
This year’s tournament marks the first time FIFA has implemented dynamic pricing for the World Cup, meaning listed ticket prices can shift based on demand over time. Back in January, FIFA president Gianni Infantino claimed that public demand for World Cup tickets was equal to “1,000 years of World Cups at once,” predicting that all 104 tournament matches would sell out completely. To date, that prediction has not held: while 17 total group stage matches are listed as sold out on FIFA’s website, dozens more still have general sale inventory. The tournament’s opening match between co-host Mexico and South Africa in Mexico City is sold out, alongside seven other matches held across Mexican venues, including Mexico’s two additional group games against South Korea (Guadalajara) and Czech Republic (Mexico City). Other sold out group fixtures include Turkey vs. USA in Los Angeles, Brazil’s match against Morocco in the New York/New Jersey metro area, and Scotland’s clash with Brazil in Miami. Even for top national sides including defending champions Argentina, Brazil, Spain, France, and England, fans who can afford the current asking prices are still able to purchase tickets directly.
Beyond group stage play, no general sale tickets are currently available for the tournament final. However, premium seats for the two semifinal matches are still on offer, with prices reaching five figures: a top-tier ticket for the Atlanta semifinal lists for $9,660, while the same seating tier for the Dallas semifinal costs $11,130.
The unprecedented pricing has sparked significant backlash from fans worldwide, who have called FIFA’s pricing strategy a “monumental betrayal” of soccer supporters. Fan anger has been amplified by the introduction of additional high-priced seating categories as the tournament approaches, with most of the remaining general sale tickets falling into these more expensive tiers. Fans looking for resold tickets also face extreme markup: last month, four final seats were listed on third-party resale platforms (including FIFA’s official resale marketplace) for just under $2.3 million per ticket. While FIFA does not set resale prices or directly list resold tickets on its marketplace, the organization takes a 30% cut of every resale transaction, allowing it to profit a second time from the same seat.