Fans were excited by Canada’s co-hosting duties for the quadrennial global football event and have been unable to wait to experience the world’s greatest tournament within Canada’s borders, but there remain hundreds of World Cup games in the country up for sale even as FIFA claims it received record demand last week with fewer than two weeks until the beginning of games.
Fans are finding it unaffordable to attend any World Cup match, as the cheapest tickets available for the cheapest group stage match hosted in Canada between Canada and Bosnia and Herzegovina are priced above $1,000 for face value.
FIFA is already drawing considerable backlash from a variable pricing plan, which fans have argued will exploit fans for profit and will disadvantage them in accessing their national team.
Gianni Infantino, FIFA’s president, said after he already claimed record demand for tickets that cheap tickets still remained for the public and still maintained that it had a variable pricing system to match current global trends. The issue is also proving frustrating to many economists and officials.
Increasing hosting costs in both countries are an added concern, with Toronto estimating that its costs had risen from $45 million to at least $380 million, while Vancouver is experiencing similar costs over their estimates.
