FIFA blasted for 'extortionate' World Cup ticket prices in latest lottery phase

There are a great number of soccer fans who were waiting for Thursday to start buying tickets for their country's World Cup games. And then they found out the price. And now they're not so excited.

Thursday saw the beginning of FIFA's first lottery phase since fans actually found out which games would feature which teams thanks to the World Cup draw last week. It also saw FIFA's latest ticket price hike, with get-in prices rising by hundreds of dollars for some games.

As The Athletic's Henry Bushnell broke down:

It hiked some Category 1 ticket prices from $410 or $445 last month to $700 for games such as England vs. Croatia and Scotland vs. Brazil. In total, the Category 1 price rose for 80 of the 104 matches — in some cases by 71% — while it fell for 11 matches, according to data tracked and compiled by The Athletic.

Those Category 1 games are basically just lower-bowl seats, and even second-deck seats in some stadiums. Seats are divided into four different categories, and FIFA promised tickets priced as low as $60 for some of the Category 4 tickets. Per The Athletic, those tickets appear to be scarce bordering on unattainable, with none available for sale on Thursday.

These are the prices that FIFA will be rolling with through Jan. 13, when the current lottery phase closes and fans will either receive their tickets while getting charged or receive a rejection notice.

Football Supporters Europe, an organization representing fans' interests in such matters, released a furious statement calling the prices "extortionate" and "astronomical", noting they are exorbitant even when compared to the 2022 World Cup, which was held in Qatar in stadiums built at enormous expense:

Based on the information currently available to FSE, if a supporter were to follow their team from the first match to the final through a PMA allocation, it would cost them a minimum of 6900 USD – nearly five times as much as during the FIFA WC 2022 in Qatar.  

National team supporters are expected to pay this full amount in early 2026 to have the opportunity to follow their team up to the final. 

Adding insult to injury, the lowest price category will not be available to the most dedicated supporters through their National Associations, as FIFA chose to reserve the scarce number of category 4 tickets to the general sales, subject to dynamic ticket pricing. This is a monumental betrayal of the tradition of the World Cup, ignoring the contribution of supporters to the spectacle it is.  

Tasos Katopodis - FIFA via Getty Images

What's different in this World Cup is FIFA's introduction of variable pricing, which essentially means setting ticket prices based on the expected demand for the seats. That will sound like standard operating procedure, or even quaint, for many American fans used to shelling out for NFL games in the very stadiums that will be hosting some of the World Cup games, but it's an outrage for some international fans used to different standards of fan treatment.

FIFA defended its decision in a statement to The Athletic:

A FIFA spokesman told The Athletic in a statement this week that “the pricing model … reflects the existing market practice for major entertainment and sporting events within our hosts on a daily basis, soccer included.”

Soccer’s global governing body also frequently points out that, “as a not-for-profit organization, the revenue FIFA generates from the World Cup is reinvested to fuel the growth of the game (men, women, youth) throughout FIFA’s 211 member associations.”

The World Cup is scheduled to begin on June 11, with games in the United States, Canada and Mexico.