The World Cup is almost upon us, but what should be a moment of joy for football supporters around the world doesn’t quite feel that way (at least for me and many other supporters). There are many issues surrounding this World Cup and the hosts, particularly the U.S. Chief among them is the extremely high cost of tickets. There have also been concerns about the difficulties supporters from certain countries are facing in entering the country. Finally, there are major concerns about the high summer temperatures for players, staff, and supporters in the stands.
The biggest issue written about regarding the upcoming tournament is the high cost of tickets. For this World Cup, FIFA has three ticketing categories: category 1, the highest-priced; category 2, the middle-priced; and category 3, the lowest-priced. According to a report in The Athletic from last October, when the tickets first went on sale, the average price of a category 3 was around $250. In recent months, the prices have only risen further. For example, in April, tickets in category 3 for the U.S. national team’s opening match were selling for $1,120 per ticket. The same applied to many of the other group-stage matches, where prices rose by around 27 percent. All of this appears to be pure greed on the part of FIFA, who know that dynamic pricing has taken over the U.S ticketing market in recent years. So a certain type of person will be willing to pay through the nose for nosebleed seats, while the majority of society will be left watching on TV.
If you are one of the lucky few who can afford to get to a match, you will be in for a shock when you find out about the cost of parking and transportation. According to another report in The Athletic, FIFA raised the cost of parking outside of stadiums in February from around $75 to $175 or, in some cases, even more. Also, FIFA has priced disabled parking passes at around the same prices. At Sofi Stadium in Los Angeles, a disabled parking pass can cost $300. FIFA, being FIFA, decided to apply the same “variable pricing strategy” to parking ticketing as well. On top of the parking situation, certain cities, such as New York, are charging $98 to take the train to and from the stadium. No matter how you look at it, just getting to a match is going to be an expensive endeavor.
Another major issue facing this World Cup is immigration, including visa and enforcement issues that may affect participants of all kinds. According to a report in the Washington Post, stadium workers in LA are threatening to strike before the U.S opener on Friday due to concerns over ICE raids. On top of that, supporters from countries such as Haiti are banned from entering the country. Even supporters from countries where obtaining a U.S. visa is normally a straightforward process have reported difficulties obtaining a visa. All of this has led to an unnecessary climate where even supporters from nations such as England have had second thoughts about attending matches, particularly those taking place in the U.S.
Speaking of the climate, many concerns have been raised about the extreme summer temperatures during the tournament. All 48 nations taking part in the tournament will face challenges due to the long travel distances between venues across three different countries. On top of that, some venues, such as Mexico City, are at high altitudes that can negatively affect performance. The biggest overall, though, will be the oppressive heat and humidity in places such as Kansas City and Miami. While there is no ideal solution, most medical staff will have strategies to address the various challenges that arise. Another issue is how the heat will affect supporters in the stands. According to another report in The Athletic, up until a few days ago, FIFA reversed a decision that prohibited supporters from bringing their own water bottles into stadiums. They clearly realized that not allowing water bottles could prove extremely dangerous for supporters.
All in all, this is shaping up to be a fascinating tournament both on and off the pitch. From a personal perspective, it is disappointing that the city where I live isn’t hosting any of the matches. However, I most likely wouldn’t have been able to afford a ticket anyway. FIFA has done an excellent job of pricing out a large number of dedicated supporters like me who genuinely love the sport and the good that it is (supposed) to stand for. This should have been the moment when football took off in this country; however, the only people who will seemingly witness it are the top 1%. While I am looking forward to the tournament, FIFA has succeeded in sucking some of the joy out of the beautiful game.
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