The report highlighted that FIFA also has around 15,000 unsold tickets for group-stage matches listed on its main ticketing site. The majority of the tickets available on the resale platform are for group-stage games, with median resale prices reportedly dropping by 20%, and some tickets being priced as low as $69.
According to the Financial Times, there are still about 4,400 tickets available for the opening match between the United States and Paraguay. The report also noted that approximately 16,000 tickets remain unsold for Iran’s group-stage games, while Saudi Arabia’s matches have an average of 3,900 tickets still on offer for each game.
These numbers have sparked concerns regarding the demand for specific matches, despite FIFA’s predictions of unprecedented attendance at the expanded tournament.
The Financial Times pointed out that FIFA president Gianni Infantino has frequently referred to the 2026 World Cup as the largest sporting event in history, expressing optimism that it will exceed the attendance record of 3.5 million set during the 1994 World Cup in the United States.
As the tournament prepares to begin in the next few days, focus is likely to remain on ticket sales and stadium attendance, especially for matches featuring the host nation, the United States.
