Overview
- Roughly 150 million requests were logged in the first 15 days for an inventory of about 6–7 million tickets, leaving the tournament oversubscribed by around 30 times with applications from more than 200 countries.
- Infantino highlighted that cumulative requests equate to several times the total attendance across all past World Cups and framed the demand as validation of current pricing.
- Fan groups continue to criticize steep costs, and FIFA has introduced a limited Supporter Entry Tier around $60 that critics say does not solve broader affordability concerns.
- The current Random Selection Draw opened on December 11 and runs until January 13, after which tickets will be allocated by lot with later phases to follow.
- FIFA also announced a new partnership with Dubai to stage its awards beginning in 2026, moving the FIFA Best Awards to the city under a newly branded ceremony.