High Ticket Prices Define First 2026 World Cup Presale

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FIFA released its first batch of tickets for the 2026 World Cup this week, revealing by far the most expensive prices in the tournament’s history.

On Wednesday, the first group of people received instructions to purchase tickets for the Visa Presale Draw. FIFA only sent instructions to a fraction of the more than 4.5 million fans who had entered for the presale; millions of fans are still waiting on word from FIFA that they might be selected at a later date. A second ticket selection round was held on Friday.

While ticket prices for many group stage matches held in the U.S., Mexico, and Canada start at $60 as FIFA said they would, those only make up a small portion of the available offerings, the cheapest level of four price categories. Sitting anywhere outside of the nosebleeds will cost at least $140 per ticket for even the cheapest matches in the U.S. The most expensive group stage match is the struggling U.S. Men’s National Team’s opener in Los Angeles, with the cheapest seats priced at $560 and the best seats at $2,735.

The prices continue their historic climb as the tournament progresses. Prices for the Rounds of 32 and 16 at U.S. venues range from $125 at their lowest to $890 at their peak. A seat to a quarterfinal match will cost at least $275, and a semifinal bout at least $420.

The lowest price for a ticket to the final held at New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium is $2,030. The other three price categories for the final are $2,790, $4,210, and $6,370.

These figures make the 2026 World Cup by far the priciest tournament on record. For the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, the lowest group stage tickets—reserved for host country residents, unlike the 2026 tournament—cost only $11. The lowest ticket for that year’s final was $206, while the highest was $1,607. The tournament begins in June.

The England Fans’ Embassy of the Football Supporters’ Association called the prices “astonishing,” and said it’s “unacceptable” for the cheapest ticket to the final to cost more than $2,000.

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FIFA will hold two presale periods—with the second one coming Oct. 27—before it announces the tournament draw in early December. FIFA is planning to hold additional windows following the draw, though those prices will be heavily influenced by FIFA’s “variable pricing” strategy.

FIFA’s dynamic pricing model means that the cost of tickets will fluctuate based on demand. The global soccer body tried this approach with the Club World Cup, hosted by the U.S. this past summer, but eventually abandoned the strategy amid high prices, poor ticket sales, and partly empty stadiums.

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As of Friday evening, no World Cup final tickets were available on FIFA’s official resale platform, but on StubHub, prices ranged from the cheapest ticket in the high corner of the stadium for $5,937 to the most expensive at midfield in the lower bowl at $38,665.

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