FIFA President Infantino Defends Exorbitant World Cup Ticket Prices

FIFA President Gianni Infantino speaks during the 29th annual Milken Institute Global Conference at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California on May 5, 2026. (Photo by Patrick T. Fallon / AFP via Getty Images)

AFP via Getty Images

World Cup ticket pricing is a ‘monumental betrayal’

Football Supporters Europe has called the pricing structure “extortionate” and a “monumental betrayal.”

In March, FSE and the European Commission filed a lawsuit, claiming FIFA was using “excessive ticket prices" for the World Cup.

Many fans in the United States, co-hosts of the competition with Mexico and Canada, and Europe are in in arms about the prices, claiming many are unaffordable.

Infantino said that FIFA received more than 500 million ticket requests for this tournament, compared with fewer than 50 million combined for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups. He claimed that one-fourth of the group phase tickets were under $300.

“You cannot go to watch in the US a college game, not even speaking about a top professional game of a certain level, for less than $300,” Infantino said. “And this is the World Cup.”

FORBES | By Michael Lewis
Slow Ticket Sales, Low Enthusiasm For USMNT Before The World Cup

Front Office Sports, however, noted that tickets for American gridiron football games are available below 300. The website reported that resale tickets to first round and quarterfinal games of the college football playoffs cost less than $300. A day prior to the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, tickets cost as low as $28.

In his talk, Infantino said that FIFA was a nonprofit, and that the World Cup funds all of his organization's activities for the next four years.

“We are in a market in which entertainment is the most developed in the world. So we have to apply market rates,” Infantino said. “In the U.S., it is permitted to resell tickets as well. So if you were to sell tickets at the price which is too low, these tickets would be resold at a much higher price.”

Beyond the out-of-control ticket prices, the build-up to this World Cup has made headlines for the wrong reasons.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 28: People prepare to enter Penn Station ahead of the Memorial Day weekend in Midtown Manhattan on May 28, 2021 in New York City. Travel for Memorial Day which has become the unofficial start of summer is expected to increase 60% this year as more restrictions due to COVID-19 are being lifted. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

Getty Images

It has been a World Cup of headaches

On Tuesday, May 5, Forbes.com reported that almost 80 percent of U.S. hoteliers in 11 U.S. host cities have said that bookings were tracking below original forecasts. Some hoteliers described the tournament as a “non-event,” according to an American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) survey of members.

FORBES | By Suzanne Rowan Kelleher
U.S. Hotels Say World Cup Is ‘Non-Event’ So Far

Transportation issues and controversies have left fans angry and perplexed fans. For example, fans who want to travel from New York City to games at MetLife Stadium, will have to pay $150 each for a roundtrip on NJ Transit. A roundup ticket usually costs $12.90. On the eight World Cup game days at the venue, NJ Transit will close Penn Station to all riders except those with special World Cup match tickets, starting four hours prior to kickoff

Those fans who plan on driving to the games, will have to park at the American Dream Mall for $225. The mall is adjacent to the venue.

Boston also has increased train ticket prices to the matches at Foxborough stadium, as a $20 round-trip ticket will now cost fans $80.

Michael Lewis, the sixth recipient of the Clay Berling Media Career of Excellence Award in 2025, can be followed on X (formerly Twitter) and Bluesky at @Soccerwriter. His 10th soccer book, Around the World Cup in 40 Years: An American sportswriter's perspective, will be published this spring.

This article was originally published on Forbes.com