FIFA World Cup 2026

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For football fans around the world, some of the prices on FIFA's resale site are confirmation of what they have railed against since the tournament draw in December.

"These exorbitant prices unfortunately don't surprise me. It reflects what we know and what we fight against: many people buy to resell," Guillaume Aupretre, spokesperson for the France national team supporters group "Irresistibles Francais", which has nearly 2,500 members.

"In the end, who pays the price? The passionate fans who end up with outrageous offers. We would prefer that this benefit real fans who come to support their team, but unfortunately, that's not the case."

Yet despite the steep price tag, sales remain brisk, reflecting a global clamor that has seen some 500 million requests for tickets according to FIFA.

 

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'Monumental betrayal'

While its resale platform benefits from FIFA's endorsement, the football body specifies in its terms of sale that it acts only as a facilitator -- for a 15% fee -- in this fan-to-fan market, and that resellers are the ones who determine ticket prices.

"Generally speaking, the pricing model adopted for FIFA World Cup 26 reflects the existing market practice for major entertainment and sporting events within our hosts on a daily basis, soccer included," FIFA said in a statement.

"This is also a reflection of the treatment of the secondary market for tickets, which has a distinct legal treatment than in many other parts of the world. We are focused on ensuring fair access to our game for existing but also prospective fans."

The resale market is unregulated in the United States and Canada. In Mexico, reselling a ticket above face value is prohibited, but only when the ticket is purchased in Mexico using the local currency.

Ticketing has become one of the most controversial issues surrounding the World Cup, with fan groups around the world such as Football Supporters Europe accusing FIFA of a "monumental betrayal" over pricing.

That in turn prompted FIFA to introduce a tiny sliver of tickets priced at $60 for official supporters groups. Critics maintain the cut-price category does not go far enough in addressing the problem.

 

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FIFA meanwhile has been notifying applicants since February 5 whether they have obtained tickets during the second sales phase, which ended in January.

A final "last-minute" sales phase, from April until the end of the competition, will be organized on a "first-come, first-served" basis.

During these sales phases, FIFA states that it applies "variable pricing" whereby prices fluctuate "according to demand and availability" for each match.

However, it emphasizes that it does not apply "a dynamic pricing model (...) given that prices are not automatically adjusted."

 

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Iraq seal FIFA World Cup return after 40 years; Turkiye end 24-year drought​

AFP / Reuters
April 1, 2026

Coach Graham Arnold challenged his players to “shock the world” after Iraq became the 48th and final team to qualify for the World Cup with a nerve-shredding 2-1 win over Bolivia in an intercontinental playoff in Mexico on Tuesday.

Iraq, whose preparations were disrupted by the war in the Middle East, sealed their first appearance at the finals in 40 years and will play in Group I against France, Senegal and Norway.

Goals from Ali Al-Hamadi and Aymen Hussein secured a famous win for Iraq, whose last appearance at the World Cup came at Mexico in 1986.

“With everything going on in the Middle East at the moment it made it harder for the players,” said the Australian Arnold, who had initially sought to have the fixture postponed due to the disruption caused by the conflict.

 

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how will they facilitate iran? For all we know this sick deranged trump might actually kidnap the iranian players there!

 

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Robson Matheus of Bolivia and Merchas Doski of Irak compete for a header during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Play-Off tournament final match between Irak and Bolivia at Estadio Monterrey on March 31, 2026 in Guadalupe, Mexico. — AFP

 

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Al Jazeera English on Instagram: "Fans celebrated as #Turkiye ended a 24-year wait to secure a spot in the 2026 World Cup. They beat #Kosovo 1-0 in their ⁠playoff final, sealing a return to football’s biggest stage ⁠for the first time since 2002."

16K likes, 252 comments - aljazeeraenglish on March 31, 2026: "Fans celebrated as #Turkiye ended a 24-year wait to secure a spot in the 2026 World Cup. They beat #Kosovo 1-0 in their ⁠playoff final, sealing a return to football’s biggest stage ⁠for the first time since 2002.".

www.instagram.com

 

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Turkiye’s Mert Muldur, Zeki Celik and Arda Guler celebrate after qualifying for the FIFA World Cup at the UEFA Qualifiers Final against Kosovo at Fadil Vokrri Stadium in Pristina, Kosovo on March 31, 2026. — Reuters

Turks took to the streets to celebrate the national team reaching their third World Cup, waving flags from honking cars and gathering on main streets.

 

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Before World Cup, FIFA slammed for politicising sport with Trump prize​

Football officials and players question FIFA’s decision to award its inaugural Peace Prize to US President Donald Trump.

Al Jazeera



FIFA President Gianni Infantino presented US President Donald Trump with the FIFA Peace Prize at the World Cup draw on December 5, 2025 [Stephanie Scarbrough/AP]

By Reuters
28 Apr 2026

With six weeks to go until the World Cup, FIFA has drawn criticism for politicising football and undermining the sport’s credibility as a force for good.

Norwegian Football Association (NFF) President Lise Klaveness has called on FIFA to scrap its peace prize to avoid getting drawn into politics, suggesting that the awarding of such prizes be left to the Nobel Institute in Oslo.

 

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Led by Gianni Infantino, the sport’s global governing body came under fire for awarding its inaugural peace prize to United States President Donald Trump at the World Cup draw in December.

The FIFA peace award was seen by many as a consolation prize for Trump, who has said on numerous occasions that he should be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and whose country will co-host this year’s World Cup with Canada and Mexico.

“We [the NFF] want to see it [the FIFA peace prize] abolished. We don’t think it’s part of FIFA’s mandate to give such a prize; we think we have a Nobel Institute that does that job independently already,” Klaveness told an online news briefing.

“We think it’s important for football federations, confederations and also FIFA to try to avoid situations where this arm’s-length distance to state leaders is challenged, and these prizes will typically be very political if you don’t have really good instruments and experience to make them independent, with juries and criteria, et cetera.

“That is full-time work; it’s so sensitive. I think from a resource angle, from a mandate angle, but most importantly from a governance angle, I think it should be avoided also in the future,” she said.

 

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Congressmen call for National Guard to address drone threat at World Cup​

Congressmen call for immediate interagency action to secure airspace over ‌the 11 US World Cup 2026 host cities

Al Jazeera



A drone view shows Gillette Stadium, which will be called Boston Stadium when it hosts games in the 2026 FIFA World Cup [Brian Snyder/Reuters]

By Reuters
28 Apr 2026

‌Two Republican members of Congress are calling on the Trump ⁠administration to ⁠empower the National Guard to address potential drone-related threats and ensure a “unified federal security posture” at the upcoming World ⁠Cup games.

The letter by US Representatives Michael McCaul and Elijah Crane, who both sit on the House of Representatives’ Committee on Homeland ⁠Security, was sent to US Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, Acting US Attorney General Todd Blanche and Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth on Friday.

 

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All New York boroughs to host free World Cup fan events, Mamdani says​

Amid exorbitant fares and match tickets, fan events in New York will be free during the World Cup.

Al Jazeera



New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced that NYC will be hosting five free World Cup viewing parties in various parts of the city [Michael M Santiago/Getty Images via AFP]

By The Associated Press
28 Apr 2026

New York City will hold a series of free events for football fans who hope to experience the excitement of the World Cup but cannot afford the hefty ticket prices to the matches, Mayor Zohran Mamdani said in an announcement.

Mamdani, a noted football devotee, announced the free events alongside New York Governor Kathy Hochul on Monday.

“Every fan should be able to watch the greatest tournament on earth without dipping into their savings,” Mamdani said.

The events – one in each of the city’s five boroughs – will include watch parties for the matches and other festivities. They will be staged at Rockefeller Center in Manhattan, the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens, Brooklyn Bridge Park in Brooklyn, a shopping centre near Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, and a minor league baseball stadium in Staten Island.

A separate fan event planned for Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, New Jersey, where the New York Red Bulls play, will cost $10.

World Cup matches will be played at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

Fans trying to get to MetLife Stadium from New York City can expect to shell out $150 for a round-trip train fare for each match, transport officials said earlier this month.

 

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Iran’s World Cup participation depends on team’s safety in the US: Minister​

Iran’s team is preparing for the FIFA World Cup but may not travel for the tournament, Sport Minister Donyamali says.

By Hafsa Adil
21 Apr 2026

Iran’s football team is preparing for the World Cup, but a final decision on its participation in the tournament will be taken by the government, the country’s sport minister says.

“If the safety of the national team’s players in the United States is ensured, we will travel to the World Cup,” Iran’s Sports and Youth Minister Ahmad Donyamali was quoted as saying by Iran’s Tasnim news agency on Tuesday.

 

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World Cup 2026 prize money, fees to be increased for all teams: FIFA​

Football’s global governing body promises to increase the funding for the tournament to help cover participation costs.
FIFA says it is ‌‌in discussions with national football associations to increase prize money for all ⁠⁠48 teams participating ⁠⁠in the World Cup.

In response to requests by ‌‌European teams to increase prize money and to assist with costs ⁠⁠associated with ⁠⁠their participation this summer in the World Cup, the world governing body is set to fulfil ⁠ ⁠those wishes, it said on Sunday.

FIFA announced in December a record World Cup prize fund of $727m, with the winning team taking home $50m and each team receiving ⁠⁠at least $10.5m. Since that December announcement, FIFA ⁠⁠and national associations have engaged in talks and aim to resolve the issue.