FIFA Receives Over 500 Million Ticket Requests for 2026 World Cup

FIFA says it has received more than 500 million ticket requests for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, despite ongoing complaints from fans about the high cost of attending the tournament.

In a statement released on Wednesday, January 14, the global football body disclosed that supporters from all 211 FIFA member countries and territories applied for tickets to the competition, which will be jointly hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

The ticket lottery application window closed on Tuesday, with FIFA confirming that applicants would be informed of the outcome of their submissions by February 5.

Outside the three host nations, the highest demand came from fans in Germany, England, Brazil, Spain, Portugal, Argentina, and Colombia.

FIFA noted that the most requested match was Colombia’s group-stage fixture against Portugal scheduled for June 27 in Miami. This was followed by interest in the World Cup final, set for July 19 in New Jersey, and Mexico’s group match against South Korea on June 18 in Guadalajara.

Reacting to the surge in applications, FIFA President Gianni Infantino described the response as unprecedented.

“Half a billion ticket requests in just over a month is more than demand — it’s a global statement,” Infantino said. “I would like to thank and congratulate football fans everywhere for this extraordinary response.”

He added that FIFA regretted being unable to accommodate every interested fan inside the stadiums.

The massive demand comes amid criticism of FIFA’s ticket pricing structure for the expanded 48-team World Cup, with supporters’ groups describing the prices as “astronomical” and “extortionate.”

According to Football Supporters Europe, some tickets are almost five times more expensive than those sold for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. In response, FIFA introduced a limited range of lower-priced tickets in December, costing $60 (approximately €51).