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Friday 5 June 2026

Teams land in US for World Cup that many fans can’t afford

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Teams have begun arriving in the US, Canada and Mexico ahead of the World Cup, which kicks off next week, but it is uncertain how many fans will be in the stadiums. Fifa has been forced to deny using unofficial resale websites to shift its own tickets at a cut-down price. It has been accused of doing so to avoid compensation claims from those who paid more for their tickets earlier in the sales window. Whole stadium blocks have appeared on SeatGeek in recent days, though the site denies it has colluded with Fifa. There have been widespread complaints about the cost of World Cup tickets, particularly given the number of low-income nations competing in the tournament. The cheapest ticket for Haiti’s opening group game is $460 on Fifa’s official resale site. This is more than twice the average gross monthly salary in the country.

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