Why the 2026 World Cup is a bargain for Ronaldo and Messi fans — and most expensive for Americans | OneFootball

Attending a World Cup is expensive, but for the 2026 tournament, where a team plays will matter more than how far fans travel. A new Doc’s Sports analysis found that host-nation fans pay the most, while many traditional football powers’ supporters pay significantly less for the same number of matches.

The study estimates total fan costs for all three group-stage matches for each of the 48 teams. It identifies Category 3 ticket prices and hotel stays as the biggest contributors to overall expenses, with inter-city travel playing a secondary role.

Why U.S. fans pay the most

Fans of the United States men’s national soccer team top the list, with an estimated $3,317 required to follow the team through the group stage — the highest total of any nation.

This has little to do with unprecedented excitement around the squad itself. Instead, it reflects the structural realities of hosting matches in some of the world’s most expensive cities.

The World Cup will strain the U.S. hospitality sector, which is still recovering from the pandemic. Hotels will charge premiums, and ticket prices remain high for what is considered a short-duration event. Food prices will rise further as businesses take advantage of the increased demand.

U.S. fans must also compete with corporate buyers, sponsors, and domestic Summer tourists, while premium sports experiences are normalized in America.

Canada ($2,947) and Mexico ($2,462) also rank among the most expensive, meaning all three host nations fall inside the top 10. Hosting, it turns out, comes at a price for locals.

Portugal and Argentina’s surprising affordability

At the opposite end of the spectrum sit powerhouses like Portugal and Argentina's national football teams, ranked among the cheapest teams to follow, with an estimated group-stage cost of around $1600.

At first glance, this seems counterintuitive, given that Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi have established local fanbases in the US, especially after Messi moved to MLS following his recent World Cup triumph in Qatar in 2022. But several factors help explain the anomaly when you look closely.

Take Argentina, which is expected to play in larger stadiums in Dallas and Kansas City, increasing ticket supply and keeping prices accessible. FIFA has a special incentive to keep the defending champions visible and affordable to a global audience and lucked out when Messi’s team drew Algeria, Austria, and Jordan in the first round.

Ronaldo will play two games in Houston against weaker opponents before heading to Miami to play Colombia, but the game will be played at Hard Rock Stadium, one of the larger venues in the tournament.

In practice, Argentina and Portugal are among the easiest giants to follow — not because demand is low, but because capacity and optics keep prices in check.

Brazil’s quiet middle ground

Notably absent from both top-10 lists is the Brazilian national football team. That omission is telling.

Brazil’s global diaspora reduces travel and lodging costs. With assignments to mid-cost host cities, Brazil avoids extreme pricing.

This doesn’t suggest lukewarm interest. Quite the opposite: Brazil’s demand is constant and predictable. The Seleção doesn’t rely on novelty to mobilize supporters — and that stability translates into balanced pricing.

Rather than a World Cup “for wealthy Brazilians only,” 2026 looks set to follow a familiar pattern: Brazilian fans adapt, optimize, and show up everywhere.

Pivoting to the broader value view, Asia dominates the rankings.

Among the best-value teams, Asian nations stand out. South Korea's national football team ranks as the cheapest overall at $1,341, with Japan's national football team also inside the top 10.

The reason isn’t shorter travel distances. Instead, these teams benefit from assignments to host cities with lower hotel prices and less competition for rooms, meaning accommodation and ticket expenses—rather than travel—most influence their total costs.Which turns out to be the study’s main conclusion: traveling between cities will not significantly affect the total cost of following a team through the tournament’s first stage.

In 2026, the decisive variable is not geography, but the pricing profile of the cities FIFA assigns.

A tournament priced for markets, not passion

You have to give it to FIFA in a sense, because their pricing model extends beyond just nations and shows a pretty good understanding of several factors that affect the cost of following a team throughout North America, given the complicated logistics of moving around the tournament.

Host nations pay more because they host expensive cities. Traditional powers seem to pay less because scale, optics, and distribution worked in their favor.

It’s still a sobering market reality, though, when you realize that the cost of following your National Team in 2026 says more about urban economics than about love of the game.

And in 2026, few places embody that reality more starkly than the United States.