Want to watch World Cup final? Tickets still available on eve of game
Hundreds of tickets for the 2026 FIFA World Cup final are still available on the organizer’s primary portal, just hours out from the conclusion of the five-week tournament.
The final between Spain and Argentina is being held on Sunday at MetLife Stadium, temporarily renamed the New York New Jersey Stadium for the competition, which international soccer’s governing body FIFA says has a total capacity of 80,663.
According to figures from the price and inventory tracking website TicketData.com, there were still 271 seats for sale as of Sunday morning on FIFA’s main ticketing portal. Newsweek’s own analysis of FIFA’s platform showed 252 tickets available, with prices ranging from $10,990 to $24,995.
The resale platforms StubHub and SeatGeek show hundreds of active listings. According to figures from the former on Sunday morning, there were 200 listings for a single seat, 397 for a pair, 72 for three together and 140 for four. The cheapest were available for $7,734.
According to TicketData.com, the current “get-in price”—cheapest available seat—is $7,633 on the secondary marketplace, though this has dropped 21 percent over the past two weeks. The availability of tickets on resale sites does not imply these seats will be empty when the match takes place, as vendors may themselves attend if they are unable to sell these at a desired price point.
Newsweek has reached out to FIFA via email for comment.
Tickets in Focus at 2026 World Cup
Supply and demand have been key focuses during this year’s World Cup, with ticket availability fluctuating and prices seeing steady increases as well as several sharp drops.
“FIFA’s pricing strategy has been hit and miss,” Stephen Shapiro, a professor of Sport and Entertainment Management at the University of South Carolina, told Newsweek last week.
FIFA has said that interest in the tournament is the primary reason for higher prices at the 2026 competition, though these have nevertheless drawn criticism from politicians, led to lawsuits from fans and investigations by host-city officials.
In late May, New York Attorney General Letitia James and New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport subpoenaed FIFA as part of a joint probe into its World Cup ticketing system. Davenport accused FIFA of turning the ticket-purchasing process into a “gauntlet of confusion, fake scarcity and impossibly high prices.”
This week, a court in Germany ordered FIFA to stop “facilitating ticket sales” in ways that the petitioner—European online ticket resale platform Ticombo—labeled “manipulative.” Ticombo alleged that FIFA failed to disclose the “identity and address of commercial sellers” on its own secondary, resale market, and of using a “combination of manipulative design features” on its primary platform.
And questions have also been raised about ticket availability. Following the sudden disappearance of over 40,000 tickets from FIFA’s main platform in late May, an uptick was observed on the resale marketplace—leading to speculation that organizers were attempting to artificially influence demand.
The Successes of the 2026 Tournament
Despite criticism of the organizers before and during the tournament, and concerns the competition would fall short of their ambitious vision, the World Cup has in many respects proven a success for the U.S. and FIFA itself.
The expanded, 48-team format has “opened a lot of doors, opportunities and possibilities” in terms of future investments, according to FIFA President Gianni Infantino, who this week told representatives of FIFA’s Member Associations that the organization’s revenues for the year are expected to surpass a record $15 billion.
Host cities have benefited from a surge in consumer spending since the tournament began, according to research from the Bank of America Institute. Separate data has revealed increased demand for short-term rentals across the 11 U.S. host cities, and some businesses have welcomed this.
“Overall, the World Cup has been an overwhelming success for our business, for Atlanta and for the country,” one Atlanta area business told Newsweek this week. “Visitors were enthusiastic, and what we’ve heard about the city’s response has been very positive. I believe the long-term impact on goodwill and tourism will be meaningful.”
However, a survey has revealed discontent among locals over a perceived increase in prices during the tournament, and other businesses have complained about strain on their regular business operations.
“I understand these major international events are important for the image of Kansas City and the few businesses able to cash in on them,” one live music venue owner told Newsweek. “But for the rest of us, it’s just another storm we have to weather through.”
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Tobias Meyjes and Tony Phillips
