World Cup ticket window opens next week, but there are catches
Applications to purchase tickets for next year’s World Cup will run Sept. 10-19 for those who use Visa and have a FIFA ID.
Once they can be bought in October, the cheapest ticket will be $60 for a group-stage match, and the most expensive ticket will start at $6,730 for the championship match in New Jersey on July 19.
FIFA announced the protocols for prospective buyers Wednesday. Atlanta will host eight matches in next year’s tournament.
There will be other, less-restrictive windows to purchase tickets. There will be one late this year, another early next year, and a first-come, first-serve sale in the second and third quarters of next year.
Applications for tickets will start at fifa.com/tickets. If the application is accepted, FIFA will notify the purchasers by email, with a dedicated time and date in October to purchase tickets. As many as four tickets can be bought per person for a single match, up to as many as 10 matches.
There will be options to buy tickets for a single match, for a specific venue, or a package to follow a certain team. If that team doesn’t qualify and the purchaser wants a refund, FIFA will do that. FIFA also is going to start a resale website.
The U.S. men will open the tournament with a match in Los Angeles on June 12.
The draw for the World Cup is scheduled to be held Dec. 5 in Washington.
FIFA will use dynamic pricing, which means if there is a high demand ticket prices will increase. FIFA officials didn’t provide details regarding how much they expect prices could increase. FIFA said it will use dynamic pricing because it wants to optimize revenue for its member associations, as well as try to have the maximum attendance for each match.
There will be four categories of prices. Category Four is the lowest at $60. It will be farthest from the field. Prices for the remaining three categories haven’t yet been set, other than for a Category One seat for the championship match.
FIFA officials said they don’t yet know how many seats will be available for each of the 16 host stadiums in the first draw.
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