Football fans across Europe unite against historically high 2026 World Cup ticket prices after FIFA 'betrayal'
Football Supporters Europe have released a statement calling for FIFA to halt ticket sales immediately.
As the excitement of the draw fades away, reality is kicking in for Scotland fans, who like so many others, are now at risk of being priced out of next summer’s tournament.
As 2026 World Cup ticket prices reach a ‘historically’ high figure, Football Supporters Europe (FSE) have called on an immediate halt to ticket sales. They released a statement after it was established that tickets allocated to Participating Member Associations (PMAs) would reach a record high price for group games. Scotland Supporters Club members are set to receive less than 4,000 tickets per game.
Too add to this, if a fan wanted to follow their country from their opening game until the final, they would have to cough up around $7,000 in full in February, a significant increase from the previous tournament in Qatar. Also, these wouldn’t be refunded until July in the event of an earlier exit.
Another first for this World Cup is that match tickets are being sold on the ‘attractiveness’ of the game, rather than a flat rate. For example Scotland’s opener against Haiti in Boston will be priced at £134, £298 or £372, while the Morocco game at the same venue will be £163, £320 or £447.
FSE calls for immediate halt to World Cup ticket sales
In protest of the new ticketing system, an FSE statement read: “Football Supporters Europe is astonished by the extortionate ticket prices imposed by FIFA on the most dedicated supporters for next year’s FIFA World Cup. In the price tables gradually and confidentially released by FIFA, tickets allocated to National Associations (PMA – Participating Member Association allocation), which typically distribute them via official supporters’ groups or loyalty programmes to their most devoted fans, are reaching astronomical levels.
“Based on the information currently available to FSE, if a supporter were to follow their team from the first match to the final through a PMA allocation, it would cost them a minimum of 6900 USD – nearly five times as much as during the FIFA WC 2022 in Qatar. National team supporters are expected to pay this full amount in early 2026 to have the opportunity to follow their team up to the final.
“Adding insult to injury, the lowest price category will not be available to the most dedicated supporters through their National Associations, as FIFA chose to reserve the scarce number of category 4 tickets to the general sales, subject to dynamic ticket pricing. This is a monumental betrayal of the tradition of the World Cup, ignoring the contribution of supporters to the spectacle it is.”
FSE call out false FIFA promises
The statement continued: “for the first time in World Cup history, no consistent price will be offered across all group stage games. Instead, FIFA is introducing a variable pricing policy dependent on vague criteria such as the perceived attractiveness of the fixture. Fans of different national teams will therefore have to pay different prices for the same category at the same stage of the tournament, without any transparency on the pricing structure enforced by FIFA.
“The bid document released in 2018 promised tickets priced as low as 21 USD. Where are these tickets now? The full way to the final, according to the same bid book, was supposed to cost 2242 USD in the cheapest category. This promise is long gone.
“We call on FIFA to immediately halt PMA ticket sales, engage in a consultation with all impacted parties, and review ticket prices and category distribution until a solution that respects the tradition, universality, and cultural significance of the World Cup is found.”