World Cup ticket prices draw criticism from Mexico's president and US state probes amid FIFA defense

Political pressure builds over ticket pricing

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum publicly urged FIFA to reflect on its pricing model for the 2026 World Cup, saying the tournament should be more than a business. Tickets for the 104 matches across Mexico, the United States and Canada initially ranged from $140 to $8,680, with the final at MetLife Stadium priced at $32,970 for face-value entry. On FIFA's own resale platform in April, four tickets for the final were listed at about $2.3 million each. Sheinbaum's government has also faced protests from social movements accusing it of prioritizing the tournament over pressing needs, and stadiums in cities like Guadalajara have shown visible swaths of empty seats.

Soccer has to be something else. All of this should prompt reflection, even within FIFA.

US state attorneys general launch ticketing probes

The top law enforcement officials of New York, New Jersey, California and Texas have opened investigations into World Cup ticketing, alleging that FIFA misled fans about seat locations and created false scarcity to drive up costs. The lowest-price tickets for some of the least popular matches in the US started at $60, while the United States' opening game in Los Angeles ranged from $560 to $2,735 at initial release. Dynamic pricing pushed Category 1 seats for the July 19 final from an initial $6,370 to $8,700 and later to $10,990. FIFA maintains that its practices have been vetted by legal experts.

FIFA defends market-based pricing strategy

Gianni Infantino, FIFA's president, has dismissed the criticism by pointing to limited supply and fierce demand in the North American market. He noted that many tickets resell for well above face value on secondary markets, implying that FIFA is not fully capturing the market price. An Atlantic essay by an economics professor backed that logic, arguing that underpricing seats mainly benefits scalpers and that differential pricing is an ordinary tool to segment consumers by willingness to pay.

Heat wave and storms test early matches

The tournament's opening days brought severe weather challenges. On Monday, a heat advisory for the Miami area warned of a heat index up to 107 degrees Fahrenheit (102 at kickoff) as Saudi Arabia faced Uruguay at Hard Rock Stadium. The National Weather Service also predicted thunderstorms around the 6 p.m. start. Fans from both nations braved the conditions, with one Uruguayan traveler remarking on the heat and the large expat turnout. FIFA has mandated hydration breaks twice per match and scheduled no midday games in South Florida; since the 1994 US World Cup, the world has warmed 1.3 degrees Fahrenheit and many stadiums have added shade canopies.

This heat is difficult. But there are so many Uruguayans!

Mexico's 'Social World Cup' offers free alternative

Standing against the commercial tide, Sheinbaum's administration has funded a series of free street festivals under the 'Social World Cup' banner. On June 11, half a million fans watched the Mexico–South Africa opener on giant screens across 18 events in Mexico City alone. The president herself gave her opening-match ticket to a 21-year-old Indigenous female footballer who could not afford one, and public officials surrendered about 500 tickets to program participants, plus 88 for other worthy recipients. The initiative reveals a divide between grassroots access and the tournament's premium pricing.