FIFA President Gianni Infantino defended record World Cup ticket prices and told attorneys general probing the pricing in California, New Jersey, New York and Texas that FIFA had checked its plans with top lawyers. He also said FIFA is powerless to obtain U.S.
Gianni Infantino walked into FIFA’s rare question-and-answer session on the eve of the opening match of the expanded 48-nation, 104-game World Cup tournament, and the first fight was already queued up: ticket prices.
He wasn’t flinching. Ticketing figures FIFA published for the tournament—and the way those prices ballooned for the July 19 final outside New York—have drawn heavy criticism. Infantino responded by pointing to the broader market and insisting that if FIFA had done something wrong. then “probably everyone selling tickets in North America is doing something wrong.”.
FIFA priced tickets starting at $140 for group-stage games. For the July 19 final outside New York, regular seats were listed at up to $8,680, with hospitality seats up to $73,200. FIFA raised the price for the final to $10,990 and then to $32,970. After the criticism. FIFA offered $60 tickets to national federations for their regular supporters. and Infantino said 130. 000 tickets were offered in that category.
Infantino said he believed the average ticket price was below $500 for the tournament and that it was comparable to other U.S. sports during their playoffs. He argued that secondary pricing illustrates the risk of going cheaper in the first place. saying that if FIFA sold at a lower price point. prices would still have risen—potentially pushing money toward “secondary markets or black market activities” instead of football.
His comparisons did not reach the same level of match when it came to list prices. Major League Baseball’s average World Series ticket price has been $350 to $400 in recent years. and NFL prices last season averaged $230 for the wild-card round. $320 for divisional games. $450 for conference championships and $3. 300 for the Super Bowl. Infantino also noted that four years ago in Qatar, prices ranged from $69 to $1,607.
The question hanging over his answers was what happens when criticism turns into legal attention.
Infantino said he was unconcerned about ticket probes by attorneys general in California, New Jersey, New York and Texas. “When it comes to these legal investigations or complaints that were made in some states in the U.S. ” he said. “we are very relaxed about it because before starting to sell 6 and a half or 7 million tickets we check what we do with the best lawyers. with the best experts. If we do something wrong, then probably everyone selling tickets in North America is doing something wrong, as well.”.
He told reporters that FIFA welcomed every investigation and said FIFA would “present everything” and “make our case.”
The price debate spilled further when he referenced other sports as proof that fans are seeing similar spikes. Infantino pointed to the NBA Finals between the New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs. On FIFA’s resale site, the get-in price for the World Cup final is $9,805. In the NBA Finals. get-in prices had ranged from a minimum of about $500 for the first two games in San Antonio to about $10. 000 for Game 3 in New York; Game 4 in New York dropped to about $4. 000 on Wednesday. For the Stanley Cup Final this year between teams in Las Vegas and Raleigh. North Carolina. get-in prices included at least $600 for each of the first four games of the best-of-seven series.
Ticket pricing wasn’t the only controversy Infantino addressed. He also spoke on the issue of U.S. entry for Omar Artan, a Somali referee who was set to become the first Somali referee at a World Cup and was denied entry to the United States.
Infantino said it was unfortunate Artan was denied entry at Miami International Airport on Saturday over unspecified “vetting concerns. ” with U.S. Customs and Border Protection saying so in a statement without giving details of the concerns. “We don’t control everything. We try. We’ll discuss, we will speak, we’ll see. Maybe sometimes it’s good as well to just chill, relax,” he said. He added that FIFA tries to find solutions but argued that “immediately start screaming and shouting has the opposite effect.”.
He described FIFA as not having the power to run governments and police forces, saying, “But then we need to respect that we are not the kings of the world who can rule over governments and police forces.” He said FIFA is working “behind the scenes.”
In a different thread of U.S.-related friction, Infantino praised FIFA for working through the details that allowed Iran’s national soccer team to participate even though the United States is at war with that country.
He said the Iranian team moved its training camp from the United States to Mexico and will fly to the United States just before matches. Infantino said he believed FIFA deserved credit for bringing Iran to play in America. saying. “I think it has already been successful to bring Iran to play in America.” He added. “I don’t know who would have managed to do that. ” and insisted that people involved believe it is “the right thing to do.” He also said. “we don’t live on the moon. ” and argued that “you have to deal with different situations.”.
Infantino also spoke to the business side of the tournament. FIFA is projecting $11 billion in revenue for the tournament. and he said FIFA could have generated more revenue with additional broadcast sales. “We could put everything on pay. We would generate $30 billion revenues, probably,” he said. He then argued that millions of people worldwide would not be able to watch the World Cup if those offerings were limited.
And he placed political weight on the decision to host the tournament in the United States. Infantino claimed the tournament could not have taken place without Donald Trump. saying. “Without his engagement and his involvement I think it would have been impossible — as simple as that. it would’ve been impossible to organize a World Cup in the United States.” He said Trump “understood immediately the magnitude of the World Cup. the impact of the World Cup.”.
Infantino’s demeanor also contrasted with his past public moments. The news conference went smoother than his opening comments in Qatar four years ago. Ahead of the opening match in Qatar. Infantino scolded critics during a bizarre appearance in which he claimed to feel gay. like a woman and a migrant worker. among other odd claims. and he lectured Europeans for criticizing Qatar’s human rights record.
This time, he kept an empty seat at the news conference for Christophe Gleizes, a French freelance reporter who was given a seven-year prison sentence in Algeria last year over an interview with a soccer official accused of ties to a banned separatist movement.
Now 56, Infantino has been FIFA president since 2016 and intends to seek another term next year that runs through 2031. He said the tournament will be “the biggest event probably in the history of mankind.”
As the opening match approaches. the question he tried to settle—whether FIFA’s ticket strategy will withstand scrutiny—is likely to keep running even as the tournament begins. In his view, FIFA’s legal posture is firm, the pricing is comparable to other U.S. markets, and the disputes are survivable. In the face of denials. probes and public outrage. his answer was simple: stay calm. keep selling. and “make our case.”.
Gianni Infantino FIFA World Cup 2026 ticket prices attorneys general California New Jersey New York Texas Omar Artan U.S. Customs and Border Protection Donald Trump Iran national soccer team Christophe Gleizes Miami International Airport
So basically he shrugged at it… love that for him.
If they checked with lawyers doesn’t that just mean it’s still legal, not that it’s fair. $8,680 for a seat is absolutely wild. People act like “the market” makes it not scammy.
Wait, I thought FIFA can just ticket whatever they want. Like, they’re FIFA, they should be able to fix it? But now he’s saying he’s powerless to get anything in the US? Sounds like he’s blaming the states or something instead of lowering prices. Also why does the final jump like that, just because it’s near NYC?
record ticket prices and he says “everyone else is doing something wrong” like that helps. Attorneys general in CA/NJ/NY/TX probing it sounds like common sense to me though. I mean $32,970?? That’s not even for regular, right? And hospitality seats?? Maybe rich people only, congrats. I saw somewhere they already raised them because of taxes or whatever, but idk.