NEW YORK – At the 2026 World Cup, ticket buyers have confounded even the greatest cynics in the face of sky-high prices, with the final at MetLife Stadium on July 19 widely billed as the single most expensive sporting event ever played in the United States.

“What FIFA did a very good job of was determining what demand would be because people (were) paying these absurd prices for just about all the 104 matches,” said Scott Friedman, a ticketing expert who previously worked for the Cleveland Cavaliers.

“A year ago, we didn’t think people would be travelling with Trump’s ICE stuff and all this other conspiracy stuff. But it’s the most popular tournament in the world by far globally and FIFA, to their credit, they set the prices high and people ended up paying them.”

A Reuters analysis of FIFA attendance data found that more than half the 72 group matches were attended to capacity, with most others only a few hundred fans short of a full house. Around 99.7 per cent of available seats were filled during the preliminary stage matches, FIFA said.

The data erased early concerns that FIFA’s infamously steep prices would put off fans, after swathes of empty seats were seen around the Estadio Akron in Guadalajara for the June 11 match between South Korea and the Czech Republic. FIFA reported an attendance of 44,985 at the nearly 46,000-seat stadium but empty seats seen by a Reuters witness around the arena seemed to justify critics’ biggest fears.

As the tournament expanded to its largest-ever field, however, with 48 teams involved, so too did interest among fans.

Prices were set initially at US$575 (S$740) a ticket for group games – more than double the most expensive group ticket available during the 2022 tournament – but FIFA’s dynamic pricing system meant that many ticketholders paid far more.

Hundreds of tickets were still available for the final on July 15, priced at little more than USUS$7,000 on FIFA’s platform, a surprise fact that prompted speculation over whether FIFA had finally gone too far with its prices.