How to still buy World Cup tickets and the eye-watering costs facing England and Scotland fans | OneFootball

Tickets for exact World Cup 2026 matches will be available for the first time from 11 December as the next phase of sales begins.

Fans have until 13 January to sign up for the “random selection draw” - with the match schedule for next summer’s tournament now confirmed following the World Cup draw.

Fifa have said nearly two million tickets have already been sold for the 48-team tournament, which will be held across 104 matches in 16 cities in the United States, Mexico and Canada.

Until now, those tickets have been purchased without supporters knowing who will be playing.

But with England and Scotland now knowing their fixtures and locations, fans can target the games they want to see.

How to enter the Random Selection Draw

The next phase of ticket sales begins on Thursday 11 December with the Random Selection Draw opening at 4pm BST (11am ET) and closing on Tuesday 13 January at 4pm BST (11am ET). The timing of a fan’s entry into the draw will not impact their chance of successfully purchasing a ticket, so there is no need for a mad scramble once the draw opens.

Fans can access the draw by registering for a Fifa ID and entering through Fifa’s ticketing portal (FIFA.com/tickets). Once through, they will be able to select the match or matches they want and will be able to see the price of each ticket based on ticket category (more on this below). Sales restrictions are limited to four tickets per match, and up to 40 per household for the tournament.

You will only be charged for the tickets if you are successful in the draw, and Fifa will notify those successful or partially successful ticket applicants in February. A partially successful fan will have secured tickets, but not to all of the matches they have requested. You will not be charged for the tickets and matches in which you have been unsuccessful, but you will be automatically charged for all the tickets you have been successful for and there is no back-out option.

Yes, England and Scotland fans will be able to access a window for PMA (Participating Member Associations) tickets. PMAs are allocated eight per cent of the tickets for each match they take part in.

However, priority is given to supporters through respective loyalty points systems, accrued by attending many matches over many years. If you don’t meet the eligibility criteria set out by the FA and SFA, having access to these tickets is unlikely. There is some hope that the pricing for PMA tickets will be ringfenced to protect the most loyal supporters.

There is also Fifa’s own resale platform (which will reopen for purchasing tickets on 15 December), as well as third-party ticket sellers. For games taking place in the United States and Canada, Fifa’s resale market allows sellers to determine the listing price of each ticket - they could, in theory, be several times face value, especially for popular teams and matches. In Mexico, there are restrictions that prevent this.

Fifa has urged fans to only buy resale tickets through its official resale platform, with the system designed to protect supporters from purchasing fake tickets and being ripped off by touts on the open market. However, Fifa will also take a 15 per cent “facilitation fee” from both the seller and the buyer on every ticket sold on its resale market. Fifa has defended this by stating that “resale fees are aligned with North American industry trends across various sports and entertainment sectors”.

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(AFP via Getty Images)

Hospitality tickets are available but the prices are eye-watering, starting at $1,450 per person, while any remaining tickets for matches that are not sold-out after the lottery could be available on a first-come-first served basis closer to the tournament.

“Variable pricing” will also be in effect at the World Cup for the first time, as it was at the Club World Cup last summer. So while prices could therefore skyrocket for in-demand games, they could also go down closer to the tournament if tickets remain unsold, although these would most likely be for the most unpopular match-ups. Uzbekistan vs IC Play-off Winner 1, anyone?

For the next phase of sales, we won’t know how much tickets will be until the Random Selection Draw opens.

Prepare yourself, though. As outlined above, those costs will vary from match to match due to demand, set out by Fifa’s own variable pricing regulations.

On a third-party reseller, the cheapest ticket (Category 4) for Uzbekistan vs IC Play-off Winner 1 in Atalanta is currently £133. On the same website, the cheapest ticket for Portugal vs Columbia in Miami is over £1,500, and that’s for a nosebleed seat in the back-row.

Fifa announced a few months ago that there would be $60 (£45) tickets available for some group games. But let’s take a look at a stadium map to see where those tickets could be. Fifa has announced four categories of tickets, ranging from the most-expensive Category 1 seats nearest the pitch in the lower bowl to the least-expensive Category 4 seats in the back rows of the upper ring.

A seating breakdown of the enormous ‘Dallas Stadium’ in Texas, where England will play Croatia in their opening game, indicates how those categories have been divided. Basically, if you’re applying for a Category 4 ticket in the Random Selection Draw, the odds are stacked against you. There’s a reason they call it a lottery.

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(Fifa)

“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.

“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.

“Stadium category maps do not reflect the number of tickets available in a given category but rather present default seating locations.

“Fifa resale fees are aligned with North American industry trends across various sports and entertainment sectors."