FIFA's high-ticket-price strategy backfired spectacularly on the opening day of the 2026 World Cup, as thousands of empty seats were visible across stadiums worldwide. The controversy surrounding FIFA's ticketing reached a new low during the second match, where vast patches of empty seats were clearly visible to a global television audience.
Visible Empty Seats in Early Matches
South Korea's comeback win over Czech Republic at Estadio Akron in Guadalajara offered the clearest early sign of the problem. Empty sections were visible throughout the encounter, particularly in VIP areas and sections facing away from the main camera. This followed drama in the very first game, which FIFA had spent months and millions trying to prevent.
Price Cuts and Unsold Tickets
As late as early June, FIFA quietly slashed prices across all 104 fixtures and freed up 70% of its bulk-reserved hotel rooms in a last-ditch effort to pack seats. On the eve of the tournament, approximately 180,000 tickets remained available on FIFA's official resale platforms. Around 15,000 group-stage tickets could still be purchased directly through FIFA's website. For the United States' opening match against Paraguay, over 4,400 seats remained unsold through official channels.
The least expensive tickets still demanded $1,120 (£835) directly from FIFA, with the average resale price hovering above $800 (£597) even after a 20% dip over the past month.
Root of the Crisis: Variable Pricing
The crisis traces back to FIFA's decision to implement variable pricing for the first time at a World Cup. Prices for 90 of the 104 matches soared by an average of 34% between October 2025 and April 2026. The cheapest standard ticket to the final reached $5,785 (£4,315), with the most expensive seats peaking at $10,990 before tripling again. Final tickets on the resale market were listed at nearly $33,000, despite the original hosting bid promising a maximum of $1,550 per seat.
Infantino's Defense
Gianni Infantino defended the pricing in his final press conference, arguing that cheaper tickets would be resold on the black market. He stated, "If you sell it at a lower price point, in this particular market it would have gone at much, much, much higher prices on secondary markets, and where would the money go then? To those who organise secondary markets or black market activities, not to football." He added that FIFA checked its practices with lawyers and experts before selling 6.5 to 7 million tickets.
Investigations and Criticism
The attorneys general of New York and New Jersey initiated a formal investigation into the pricing practices, issuing subpoenas to FIFA. Congressional figures demanded Infantino testify before Congress. The vacant seats on the opening day serve as a scathing rebuttal to Infantino's assertions. FIFA had bragged in January that its ticketing website garnered over 500 million booking requests, but demand at FIFA's prices was significantly lower.
