Fans attempting to buy tickets for this summer's World Cup have faced long waits, technical glitches, and soaring prices, as FIFA launched its latest sales phase. The governing body has come under fire for implementing dynamic pricing, with Category 1 tickets for the final now exceeding £8,300.
The “last-minute sales phase” is the first time fans could purchase tickets on a first-come, first-served basis without entering a lottery. However, thousands experienced lengthy delays, with some mistakenly redirected to a code-protected sale for supporters of teams that had just qualified on Tuesday. Those affected had to re-enter the queue, enduring further frustration.
Of the 104 matches, 40 saw price increases on Wednesday compared to previous phases. Tickets for the final in Category 1 rose to £8,316, up from £4,820 in October. Category 3 tickets nearly doubled to £4,378. Semi-final and quarter-final tickets also increased, as did prices for opening matches in Mexico and Canada, where Category 1 tickets reached £2,258.
Despite speculation that some games were not selling well, no cheaper tickets were available in Wednesday's sale. Fans took to social media to vent their anger, with one describing the process as an “absolute joke” and another noting that cheapest tickets for Ecuador vs Curacao were over $300 (£242). FIFA did not disclose how many tickets were on sale but corrected a faulty link that had displayed “No products available”.
