FIFA blames empty seats at World Cup match on fans in aisles as ticket price criticism mounts

The second match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, a 2-1 win for South Korea over the Czech Republic in Guadalajara, Mexico, drew an official crowd of 44,985 in a stadium that holds 45,664. Yet television images showed entire rows of empty red seats, especially along the centre line and in the VIP sections of the east stand. The gap between the official figure and the visible attendance sparked immediate questions about FIFA's ticket policies and pricing.

Official numbers v the evidence

FIFA insisted the tally was accurate.

“The official attendance figures reflect the number of scanned tickets and spectators present within the stadium, not visual estimates of seat occupancy at a given moment during the match.”

The numbers imply only 679 seats were unoccupied. Similar discrepancies surfaced in Toronto a day later, where Canada's 1-1 draw with Bosnia-Herzegovina recorded 43,002 fans in a 43,036-capacity venue.

South Korea v Czech Republic679

Canada v Bosnia-Herzegovina34

South Korea v Czech Republic

679 seats

Canada v Bosnia-Herzegovina

34 seats

Data from the article text

The aisle defence

Asked why tens of thousands of ticket holders would have left their seats, the federation offered a single explanation.

“Please note that during yesterday evening's match in Guadalajara, fans with valid tickets were observed standing in the concourses and hospitality areas rather than remaining in their assigned seats for the entire match.”

Critics called the reasoning absurd. Swiss outlet watson.ch reported empty seats were widespread, with particularly poor uptake in the VIP zone where tickets cost between $400 and $5,000.

Ticket price backlash

Multiple articles linked the empty seats to cost. The cheapest seats on FIFA's own resale platform were listed at €382, while some second-hand tickets ran into thousands of euros. Blick.ch cited a figure of more than 180,000 tickets still available on official resale channels. La Repubblica noted that many tickets are pre-allocated to sponsors and officials who often do not attend less glamorous fixtures, meaning seats can be sold but unfilled.

Infantino's stance

FIFA president Gianni Infantino had asserted before the tournament that 500 million ticket applications were received and every match was sold out. He defended the pricing.

“Our ticket prices are reasonable. It is not as if someone wakes up one morning and sets the prices. They have been analysed and determined by many experts.”

In a separate media appearance he said,

“Every dollar we generate flows back into football.”

Wider tournament concerns

The images from Guadalajara also showed a grass hedge separating fans from the pitch, a security feature intended to replace fences and complement the volcano-inspired stadium design by French architects Jean-Marie Massaud and Daniel Pouzet. Whether the empty seats are an isolated hiccup or a sign of deeper issues with ticket distribution remains an open question. The Toronto opener's sparse patches suggest the problem may not be confined to one host city.