For soccer fans, much of the lead-up to the FIFA World Cup has centered around disappointment and shock rather than excitement and joy.
Fans, who are facing a wide range of issues from expensive match tickets to logistical concerns, are pointing their fingers at the sport’s global governing body and local organizers in host countries Canada, Mexico and the United States.
Recommended stories
list of 4 itemsend of list
Political tensions are also a hot topic after attacks on Iran by the United States and Israel led to a regional conflict with global implications. The conflict has repeatedly raised questions about the United States hosting games in Iran, but FIFA president Gianni Infantino has confirmed that Iranian Team Melli will play. However, Iranian officials called on the World Cup host nation to address concerns.
For fans attending the tournament, which begins on June 11 and concludes on July 19, or watching 104 matches from around the world, below are some of the key talking points.
Free fan festival brings respite
After nearly six months of expressing outrage over the “exorbitant” prices of World Cup match tickets, local fans have rushed to book the tournament’s official fan festival in the host city.
An unregulated resale market and dynamic pricing in the United States meant that some tickets to the World Cup finals were priced as high as $2 million each, drawing harsh criticism from fans, politicians and soccer experts, but the decision by some host cities to offer free entry to fan festivals proved an instant hit.
Local festivals offer fans the opportunity to enjoy game screenings in a lively environment with food, drink, and, in some venues, free music performances, compared to exorbitantly priced game tickets and expensive commutes to the venue.
In Toronto, the first wave of tickets for the official fan festival sold out within four hours. According to city officials, 220,000 free general admission tickets for the next event will go on sale on Friday.
Meanwhile, in New York City, all five boroughs will host free fan zones after soccer-loving Mayor Zoran Mamdani announced that fans should not be asked to pay to attend such events.
In the neighboring U.S. state of New Jersey, select games will be shown at Sports Illustrated Stadium, with tickets costing $10.
MetLife Stadium in New Jersey will be renamed New York-New Jersey Stadium for the World Cup, and will host the final on July 19.
Atlanta, Philadelphia, Kansas City, Mexico City, and Vancouver are other host cities that offer free general admission to Fan Festival.
The city of Los Angeles will charge $10 for admission to the official fan festival at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, while free “fan zones” will be set up throughout local communities in Los Angeles County, home to several of the diaspora communities of the World Cup participating nations.
The last world cup for panini sticker lovers
A World Cup classic that approaches its swan song is the Panini Sticker Book. It’s a decades-old obsession of thousands of soccer fans who buy and trade stickers as they compete to complete albums of stickers of top players.
The tradition of popular sticker deals, which range from $1.50 to thousands of dollars for popular pieces, has been in full swing since Italian company Panini launched this year’s sticker book in late April.
980 unique stickers, including 68 “special” stickers, will be needed to fill the 112-page album, which will go on sale from Thursday as 48 countries prepare for the biggest tournament in history in June and July.
This multi-generational fan-favorite hobby has evolved since its founding in 1970, with transactions moving to WhatsApp groups, the use of the hashtag “Got, Got, Need” on social media, and meet-ups in public spaces to exchange Panini stickers.
For many children, completing an album is a more important goal than winning the World Cup for their national team, and parents who want to please their children take over helping their children meet this task.
A video on social media that recently went viral showed Brazilian star Marquinho’s children screaming with joy when young Spanish star Lamine Yamal appeared as one of seven cards from a Panini sticker pack.
FIFA’s ‘Host City’ collection shirts come under fire
Last week, FIFA released limited-edition collectible football shirts in each host city priced at $375, a staggering sum comparable to expensive match tickets or regular tickets, leaving fans disappointed but not really surprised.
Soccer fans criticized FIFA on social media, accusing soccer’s international governing body of trying to profit from the World Cup rather than caring about the fan experience.
Each of the 16 host cities has its own unique shirt, and due to a marketing strategy, only 999 shirts will be available in each city.
None of the four U.S. shirts released last week (Kansas City, Boston, Seattle, New York/New Jersey) are sold out yet.
The bright colors and graphics don’t seem to be to everyone’s taste, with one social media user asking people to get paid to wear the shirt instead of spending money to buy it. However, some consider them to be souvenirs.
We ask Indian and Chinese fans how they view the World Cup
Millions of soccer fans in the world’s two most populous countries may not be able to watch the World Cup due to an impasse over broadcast rights in India and no official decision on broadcasting the tournament in China.
According to FIFA, India as well as China accounted for 49.8% of all viewing time on digital and social platforms worldwide during the 2022 World Cup, but no agreement was announced in China.
FIFA has agreements with broadcasters in at least 175 regions around the world, but it is unusual that no agreements have been confirmed in India and China with just a month to go until the World Cup.
Some social media users are unfazed by the possibility of a broadcast blackout, pointing to illegal streaming websites as a savior, while others cite the timing of the match (some matches kick off well after midnight in Asia) as a good reason not to watch the match.
Three opening ceremonies, lots of topics
Another first for this year’s World Cup is that instead of one mega-event, each host country will have three opening ceremonies.
Mexico City will begin the competition with an opening ceremony on June 11, hours before the hosts play South Africa. FIFA said the performance will feature international music artists such as Alejandro Fernández, J. Balvin and Tyra, and fans will “take an active role in the show.”
American singer Katy Perry will perform at the U.S. version, while Canadian icons Alanis Morissette and Michael Bublé will headline the opening ceremony in their home country.
South Korea’s Lisa is set to become the first female K-pop artist to perform at the World Cup opening ceremony, following her compatriot Jungkook, who opened the 2022 Qatar Games with the competition song “Beliebers.”
Colombian pop icon Shakira, who gained attention for her pre-tournament performance in 2010 with her World Cup song “Waka Waka” which became a worldwide hit, has released a song titled “Die Die” for the 2026 tournament. However, she was not named among the performers at the opening ceremony.
