Cost, Trump and travel give world fans pause

Like so many Brazilians, Thiago Pessao was captured by the World Cup as a child. By the time the tournament came to his homeland in 2014, it was a full blown obsession. He attended 23 games in that tournament and 17 in Russia four years later. Only Brazil’s early exit and an agreement with his wife to leave on their departure stopped him racking up even bigger numbers in Qatar 2022.

In short, Pessao is committed to the World Cup – Brazil and beyond. But even he is struggling to justify the cost and hassle of the largely US hosted expanded tournament this time round.

He estimates he has spent $30-40,000 (€26,000 to €35,000) already. Tickets to Brazil’s group stage matches in New Jersey, Philadephia and Miami and likely round-of-32 match in Houston have cost upwards of $4000, the return air trip to Brazil $5000, and a combination of internal flights, accommodation, further match tickets and spending money are adding up fast.

He estimates he spent a little more than $10,000 in Qatar (with tickets being the main point of difference) and even less at previous tournaments.

If record winners Brazil go all the way to the final, his bill will increase still further – and that’s without attending the neutral games that are normally part of his World Cup ritual.

”I love to watch a lot of games. But for this World Cup, the tickets are too expensive, so my plan right now is only to follow Brazil,” he told DW. “A final ticket is costing $4,000 or $5,000 [the current cheapest ticket is $4,185]. I think it’s too much but my feeling is that if Brazil is in the final, I have to be there. Maybe other people will think differently, but for me, the motivation is there.”

High prices, hostile atmosphere

Pessao had a ticket for the 2022 final, which he re-sold. But he said the dynamic pricing introduced for the 2026 tournament and a lack of demand on FIFA’s new ticket exchange portal to pay the high current prices and fees before knowing the fixtures means he’s prepared to wait and see this time around.

His is a fortunate position, with such budgets and flexibility a pipe dream for many, especially those from qualifying countries with lower average incomes.

To some degree, this is always the case at World Cups. Usually it’s tempered somewhat by cheaper tickets and travel packages for fans of countries who have followed the team throughout qualifying. Though FIFA introduced a small number of $60 tickets in December following fan pressure, the sort of vibrant fan marches, dances and songs that usually mark a World Cup may be notable by their absence, thinks Pessao, who also worries about how the political climate will impact foreign visitors like him.

“Compared to other World Cups, I’m a bit more concerned about how the hostility and the surroundings will affect things. I think that the presence of ICE in the stadiums or in the cities will bring the atmosphere down.”

That’s also a concern for USA fan Adaer Melgar. He started putting away $100 a month when the World Cup was handed to his homeland eight years ago and was expecting high prices.

Despite living close to the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, making things as cheap as they could realistically be, he was still shocked by how much the experience will cost him.

‘Money-grab’ makes tournament unaffordable

“I feel like I went into the ticket buy-in process with a level head, with the understanding that it was going to be pretty expensive, but it’s still greatly exceeded my own expectations,” he said. His six tickets for two non-US matches cost him $3,400.

“I’m dealing with my own ethical qualms right now, wanting to boycott the World Cup because of the [Donald Trump] administration and the way FIFA’s going about it. For example, they’re charging to get into the fan zone. That’s never been done before. I feel like it’s a big money grab.”

While Pessao and Melgar are picking their way through their reservations, for some the relentless expense and perceived hostility mean they feel they must stay at home. Bengt Kunkel is the Stimmungsmacher (fan leader/atmosphere maker) for the German national team and has made that call. He estimates the average cost to German fans of attending their three group stage matches at between €5,000 and €8,000.

“As an ordinary person you really have no chance of affording this tournament,” he said, adding that new social media checks on visitors to the US were also a factor in his decision.

Kunkel is not alone in his reservations. On Tuesday, European consumer group Euroconsumers and fan group Football Supporters Europe filed a complaint against FIFA alleging breaches of the Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, which prohibits abuses of a dominant market position. Among the complaints are pricing, FIFA’s resale platform (where both buyer and seller are charged a 15% fee), dynamic pricing and what they describe as pressure selling tactics.

“Emails to fans claimed “exclusive access” to a “limited” ticket window that doesn’t reflect reality. By creating artificial urgency, FIFA pressured fans into making rushed decisions,” the statement said.

Visa delays and travel bans frustrate fans

The previous two World Cups have also had a fast-track, temporary visa process. While the new FIFA PASS offers the “opportunity to obtain an expedited visa interview, if needed” FIFA have been clear that tickets are no guarantee of a visa. That has proved particularly problematic for some fans including those of first-time qualifiers, Jordan. Several fans DW spoke to said their visa applications had been held up or rejected and, with the embassy currently shuttered due to the US-Israel war with Iran, hope is in short supply.

“We ask for help from the US Embassy to look closely at the Jordanian fans’ applications. We applied, but we didn’t hear any answer until now. Our applications are stuck there,” said Jordan fan Ghazi Al Samouee.

On Wednesday, the US State Department added 12 countries to a list of countries from which it demands visitors post bonds of as much as $15,000. Qualifiers Tunisia have been added while Algeria, and Cape Verde were among the World Cup teams already on the list.

Some fans won’t even be able to get as far as thinking about a visa. While Iran’s participation seems unlikely, given the war, people from Senegal, Haiti and Ivory Coast are on Trump’s travel ban list and won’t be able to go to the tournament unless they have an alternative passport. That’s despite FIFA President Gianni Infantino promising in 2025 that: “Everyone will be welcome in Canada, Mexico and the United States for the FIFA World Cup next year.”

“If we’re not accepted as supporters, our teams shouldn’t go and neither should we as supporters,” one Senegal fan told DW at the Africa Cup of Nations earlier this year. “We are the strength of these competitions. Without spectators, there’s no one. Without spectators, there is no sport, there is no entertainment.”

Infantino and FIFA have repeatedly expressed strong sentiment about the importance of fans to a World Cup.

“The world needs occasions of unity, of bringing teams together, of bringing people together, of bringing fans together,” Infantino said in the same statement last year.

Whether they are banned from traveling, feel uneasy about their safety, can’t get visas or just can’t afford it, fans around the world are struggling to feel welcomed in the US.

Dana Sumlaji and Thomas Klein contributed to this story.

Edited by: Chuck Penfold