Amid mounting backlash over the soaring cost of tickets for the 2026 World Cup, FIFA on Tuesday announced the introduction of a new, lower-priced ticket category aimed specifically at supporters of the teams involved in each match, with prices capped at $60 for every fixture, including the final.
The newly created pricing category will be drawn from the ticket allocation reserved for national associations, which receive 8% of the available tickets for every match their teams play, and within that share, the so-called entry tier will account for 10%, effectively amounting to 1.6% of the total tickets available per match when both teams’ supporters are combined.
Given the scale of most stadiums selected for the expanded 48-team tournament, this translates into just over 1,000 tickets per match at the reduced price, divided evenly between the two sets of fans.
FIFA indicated that, as with the broader supporters’ allocation, the responsibility for distributing these tickets will lie with individual football associations, which have been asked to ensure that they are directed towards loyal fans closely connected to their national teams, although no clear criteria or enforcement mechanisms were outlined.
The move prompted renewed political pressure in the United Kingdom, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer calling on FIFA to take further steps to rein in ticket prices, arguing that affordability was essential to prevent the tournament from becoming detached from its core fanbase.
Ticket pricing for the World Cup, which will be jointly hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada, has attracted sustained criticism since sales began, particularly due to the use of dynamic pricing, which has pushed the cost of many group-stage and knockout matches into the high hundreds and, in some cases, thousands of dollars.
While FIFA has defended the approach as consistent with North American market practices and emphasised the revenue benefits for member associations, supporters’ groups and political figures have continued to characterise the pricing model as excessive.
FIFA has nonetheless reported overwhelming demand, with more than 20 million ticket requests recorded during the latest sales phase that began on 11 December.