More than one million tickets sold for the 2026 World Cup in opening phase

The countdown to the 2026 World Cup continues and with eight months to go until the tournament gets underway with 28 teams already qualified, the demand for tickets for the different venues has been immense.

According to FIFA, the first window of ticket pre-sale for Visa cardholders that took place after registration between September 10 and 19 saw more than one million tickets sold at the close of this first stage of registration.

FIFA announced that after this first phase of sales, the fans from countries that have purchased the most tickets are from the United States, Canada and Mexico, the three hosts of the next World Cup, after an estimated 212 countries have participated in the sale of tickets for the World Cup.

After the hosts, fans from England, Germany, Brazil, Spain, Colombia, Argentina and France follow in order of the list with the highest number of tickets purchased, according to data shared by FIFA.

“Today we celebrate the sale of over one million FIFA World Cup tickets following the Visa presale draw. This is an incredible response and a wonderful sign that the biggest and most inclusive World Cup in history is capturing the attention of fans around the world. Fans have already purchased tickets in over 200 countries and territories, led by our enthusiastic hosts in Canada, Mexico and the United States,” Gianni Infantino explained in a statement issued by FIFA.

FIFA prepares for the second phase of World Cup ticket sales

For all those fans who were unsuccessful in purchasing tickets in the first phase of ticket sales for the 2026 World Cup, there will be a new opportunity, as the second phase of sales will be launched in the coming weeks.

Starting on October 27, a new window will open for fans from all over the world to register for the lottery, after which tickets for a single game or specific tickets for a venue or for teams will be available for purchase.

The draw for the group stage of the tournament is set to be staged in Washington DC in early December with the expanded tournament set to commence in Mexico City on June 11th, wrapping up with the final game in NY/New Jersey on July 19.

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