Empty seats left FIFA perplexed at the opening match of the World Cup, but the organizing body has sought to explain the issue in a statement.
Empty seats were evident at Canada’s opening ceremony on Friday (Image: Ezra Shaw/FIFA via Getty Images)
FIFA strangely claimed that the empty seats seen during South Korea’s win over the Czech Republic were due to “several” fans standing in the concourse rather than occupying seats.
The second leg of the 2026 World Cup ended with a come-from-behind 2-1 victory for South Korea in Guadalajara. FIFA announced the official attendance at 44,985, which was just shy of Akron Stadium’s official capacity of 45,664.
However, these individuals failed the vision test, and television broadcasts and photos taken at the Mexican compound showed vast swathes of empty seats. World Cup ticket prices have been widely criticized and appear to be having a knock-on effect.
Lower tier tickets to the South Korea vs. Czech Republic match cost $500 (£372), higher tier tickets cost $400 (£298), and VIP tickets cost a whopping $5,000 (£3,727).
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Empty seats are something of an embarrassment for FIFA, which is busy patting itself on the back for ticket sales. And a statement released on social media Friday night is unlikely to solve the problem.
“Official attendance numbers reflect the number of tickets scanned and the number of spectators present on the stadium premises, rather than a visual assessment of seat occupancy at any point during the match,” FIFA said in a statement.
“FIFA is working closely with stadium authorities and ticketing teams to ensure that all figures published are based on verified operational data. Please note that during last night’s match in Guadalajara, several ticketed fans were seen standing in the concourse rather than remaining in their assigned seats during the match.”
Several patch seats remained empty during the South Korea vs. Czech Republic game (Image: ITV)
As recently as early June, FIFA carefully reduced prices for all 104 games and released 70 percent of its bulk-booked hotel rooms in an attempt that appeared to take 11 hours to fill seats. However, it did not work very well, with approximately 180,000 tickets still listed on official resale platforms and 15,000 group stage tickets still available directly from FIFA’s website.
Gianni Infantino defended FIFA ticket prices at a press conference before the start of the tournament. He said, “If we had sold it at a lower price, it would not have been in this particular market, but in the secondary market in this country it is perfectly legal to sell it at a much, much, much higher price, and then where does the money go?”
“Well, not for football, but for the people who organize secondary and black market activities.” Infantino said the average ticket price for the tournament was less than $500, comparable to other sporting events in the United States.
There are still hundreds of tickets left for Wednesday’s World Cup opener between England and Croatia in Dallas, due in part to soaring ticket prices. Tickets start at $867 (£648), but fans can purchase up to $9,225 (£6,900) for ticket and meal packages that include access to the VIP lounge.
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