Tickets are available through an early lottery that gives host countries exclusive domestic time slots.
FIFA began the process on Monday to sell an additional 1 million tickets for next year’s World Cup, with the start of a new ticket lottery marking the start of the tournament’s second phase of sales.
The drawing will run until 11 a.m. ET on Friday and includes exclusive domestic time slots for residents of the three host countries: the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Fans from these countries whose entries are selected in this draw will be given the opportunity to purchase tickets for one match to be held in their home country.
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This phase is open to all fans, regardless of their country of residence.
Heimo Silgi, the tournament’s chief operating officer, said: “The tournament is already attracting significant interest from around the world, and particularly within the host country as Canada, Mexico and the United States prepare to host the largest FIFA World Cup in history.” “This second phase will allow us to say ‘thank you’ to our local fans, with a limited time slot within the host country, while also ensuring global opportunities.”
Fans in the United States, Canada and Mexico who entered the lottery before Friday’s closing will have the chance to receive a time slot to purchase tickets starting Nov. 12 in a randomized process, according to FIFA. These slots will be issued until November 15th. Fans who win the opportunity will be notified at least 48 hours before the time slot opens.
Residents of the three host countries, in order the United States, Canada and Mexico, purchased more tickets than residents of any other country during the initial ticketing period. England, Germany, Brazil, Spain, Colombia, Argentina and France rounded out the top 10.
Once the domestic exclusivity period ends, more fans will be able to obtain purchase slots from November 17th. Additional tickets will be made available at a later stage, FIFA said.
Visa uncertainty, dynamic pricing model
FIFA announced earlier this month that more than 1 million tickets for next year’s World Cup have already been sold, with people from 212 countries and territories already purchasing tickets. So far, 28 of the 48 spots for participating teams have been filled.
The start of ticket sales does not eliminate specific questions for consumers heading into the tournament, particularly how they will obtain visas to visit the United States if necessary, as the country tightens its immigration crackdown. The international friendly match between defending World Cup champion Argentina, featuring Lionel Messi, and Puerto Rico has been moved from Chicago to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, due to ticket sales slowing due to immigration crackdowns.
Based on listed stadium attendance numbers, approximately 7.1 million seats would be needed to fill the tournament’s 104 games at 16 venues across North America. It is unclear how many of these seats will be sold to the general public.
The lowest-priced seats, set at $60, were available for at least 40 games, according to ticket data. Almost all seats for most games were priced much higher. The U.S. team’s season opener in Inglewood, Calif., was priced at $560 to $2,735 at launch. Earlier this month, resale sites listed tickets for the June 12 U.S. season opener for at least $60,000 each.
Fans with purchase options can choose seats in one of four categories. Category 1 is what FIFA officials call the best seats, and Category 4 are seats near the top of the stadium. Ticket prices are expected to fluctuate as dynamic pricing will be used for the first time at football’s biggest event.
