Supporters are continuing to speak of their frustration at the astronomical cost of following the 2026 World Cup.
The Football Supporters’ Association has called ticket prices a “laughable insult” to fans. For some smaller nations, the cost of group-stage tickets is higher than a month’s wages in that country, before travel and accommodation are added. One Ghana fan told the BBC of “anger and disappointment” that Black Stars supporters might now be forced to cancel their plans.
Fifa’s ticket price policy was revealed on Thursday, with group-stage tickets up to three times the prices of those for Qatar in 2022. The cheapest ticket for the final will cost £3,119. On Friday, Fifa said it had received five million ticket requests from fans in more than 200 countries in the 24 hours since the latest ticketing phase opened.
Ticket prices outstrip wages for many countries
When Gianni Infantino pushed to expand the World Cup to 48 teams in 2017 he argued it would give smaller nations a chance and spread “football fever”. Yet that promise looks hollow for many fans now priced out by ticket costs.
Take Haiti, one of the poorest countries in the world, with an average wage around $147 (£110) a month. The cheapest tickets for Haiti’s first game at the World Cup in 52 years, against Scotland, cost $180 (£135). To attend all three group matches — they also play Brazil and Morocco — would cost $625 (£467). That’s more than four months’ salary for the average Haitian.
Ghana faces a similar problem, with an average monthly salary around $254 (£190). Ghana supporter Jojo Quansah told BBC World Service that fans would have to cancel their plans. “It’s a bit of a disappointment for those who, for the last three-and-a-half years, have been trying to put some money away in the hope that they can have their first World Cup experience,” he said. “Fifa themselves have gone ahead to increase the number of teams so a lot more smaller football nations will get a chance to have themselves and their fans represented. It’s been overshadowed by pricing those same fans out of a chance to watch their country play at the World Cup. I have a feeling that quite a number of people within the next couple of months, are going to drop out of that desire to be at the next World Cup. Sadly. So sadly.”
Other nations could see fans similarly priced out.
You’ve bought your tickets, how about the flights?
Any fan wanting to follow their team from the first game to the final — if they get there — will spend a minimum of £5,200 on tickets. Then there is travel.
For an England fan planning to attend the group stage, current prices show flights from London to Dallas to Boston to New York/New Jersey and then home at about £1,300. Add on £526 for the cheapest match tickets. If England were to progress through the whole tournament, with potential flights between Atlanta, Mexico City and Miami, those additional legs alone could cost £800. Flights across the tournament could total about £2,600; add the cheapest match tickets and the overall cost could reach roughly £7,800.
Scotland fans travelling from Glasgow would face group-stage flights of around £1,675 plus the lowest ticket bracket of about £500. If Scotland were to win their group and travel through to the final, flights could be about £2,357; with tickets this could total about £7,567. Many supporters are unlikely to book onward flights for knockout rounds until they know they are needed, by which time prices may be much higher.
What England and Scotland fans are saying
Paul Clegg (61), from Blackburn, says: “This will be my fifth World Cup. I haven’t missed a game since 2014. I’m in contact with England fans all over the country. I’m a top capper. We all plan to boycott games after the group stage. Football is dead.”
Anne-Marie Carr (54), from York, says: “I have diligently attended England matches so that I can earn the caps to get tickets for major tournaments only to then find that I, as so many others, are being priced out. WC 26 will be for the few, the sponsors and the glory hunters who’ve got the money to attend the big matches when they come along.”
Katie, from Glasgow, says: “Buy a ticket, you must be joking! These prices are not for the real fans, these are for corporates, bigwigs, sponsors. The real fans cannot afford those glorified prices.”
Ian, from Glenrothes, says: “Not sure why anyone is surprised. One of the reasons I’m not going, as much as I would want to see my country at a World Cup, is that there are too many practical things negating it. Airline and hotel greed, and now ticket prices. Not for me!”
Ticket prices have soared since the bid document
Host nations must present stadiums, sustainability plans and ticket pricing in their bid documents. The world has changed a lot since the United States, Mexico and Canada set out their plan in 2017: Covid and global inflation have had an impact, but not to the extent ticket rises suggest.
For some group-stage matches prices align with the bid document — for example Scotland v Haiti at $180 compared with $174 in the bid. But prices for the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final have increased dramatically. Category three for the final was proposed to be $695 (£520). Adjusted for inflation it would be about $890 (£666). Fifa is now charging $4,185 (£3,119).
How World Cup ticket prices compare to other major US events
The Super Bowl, the biggest US sporting event, is not sold directly to the public; resales for the 2025 Super Bowl started at around £3,500-£5,000 each, according to Forbes. By contrast, NBA Finals tickets can be far cheaper — last year Oklahoma City Thunder tickets started at about £52 in the top tier. WWE WrestleMania tickets for Las Vegas are available from about £250 to £1,000. Concert tours such as Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour had face values typically between £37 and £335 at US venues, though resale prices often climbed well above £1,000.
Supporters’ groups and fans say the combined effect of higher ticket tiers and travel costs risks turning the expanded, more inclusive World Cup into an event only accessible to wealthier fans, corporate buyers and sponsors, rather than the broad base of fans who have long defined the tournament.
