FIFA has slashed the price of some World Cup tickets and introduced a new $60 category for loyal supporters following a global backlash over the cost of attending the tournament in North America.
In a statement on Tuesday, world football’s governing body said the $60 tickets will be available for every match at the expanded 48-team World Cup, including the final, and will be allocated to national football federations whose teams qualify for the tournament. The federations will decide how the tickets are distributed, targeting fans who have consistently followed their national teams at home and abroad.
FIFA described the new category as a “Supporter Entry Tier”, though the number of tickets available for each match is expected to run into the hundreds rather than thousands.
The decision marks a dramatic shift from FIFA’s original ticketing strategy, under which fans could be asked to pay as much as $4,185 for premium seats at the final. FIFA did not directly acknowledge the backlash but said the lower prices were “designed to further support travelling fans following their national teams across the tournament”.
The World Cup, to be jointly hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, is expected to generate at least $10 billion in revenue for FIFA. However, anger erupted last week when ticket prices were revealed, showing that participating teams had no allocation in the lowest-priced category.
Under the initial plan, the cheapest tickets ranged from $120 to $265 for group-stage matches not involving the three co-hosts. That approach appeared to contradict assurances given during the 2018 bidding process, when the North American hosts pledged that hundreds of thousands of tickets would be sold for as little as $21.
Criticism, particularly from European supporters, had been mounting for months over FIFA’s proposed use of “dynamic pricing” and additional fees on a FIFA-operated resale platform — practices familiar in the U.S. entertainment industry but unpopular with traditional football fans.
Fan frustration intensified when it emerged that supporters reserving tickets for all potential matches involving their team, up to and including the final, would not receive refunds for unused games until after the tournament had ended.
In a further concession announced on Tuesday, FIFA said it would waive its administrative fees on all refunds issued after the July 19 final.
The changes represent a partial climbdown by FIFA as it seeks to calm discontent among supporters ahead of what will be the largest and most commercially ambitious World Cup in history.
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