Ticket sales for the 2026 FIFA World Cup officially began on Wednesday with VISA cardholders able to apply for a chance to purchase tickets. There’s plenty of controversy around the sales process and New York City mayoral hopeful Zohran Mamdani is taking a firm stand.
One of the chief complaints about FIFA’s World Cup tickets is the “dynamic pricing” set to be implemented. While FIFA were proud to announce that fans could attend group stage games for as low as $60, that number could change based on demand.
Mamdani is starting a campaign and petition to protest the ticket model. He released a video on Tuesday expressing his concerns that local fans will be priced out or even left out.
Zohran Mamdani FIFA ticket sales
The biggest sporting event in the world is happening in our backyard. But most New Yorkers will be priced out of watching it live.
Sign our petition calling on @FIFAWorldCup to put game over greed. pic.twitter.com/Rkky7Sq4HN— Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@ZohranKMamdani) September 10, 2025
Real quick… did anyone know he had that good of ball control and footwork? It’s rare enough to see a government official with some tekkers, but to do it in that outfit??
Anyway, back to the main topic. Mamdani is urging the soccer community to sign his petition with three main goals in mind.
- End dynamic pricing
- Limit the price of resale tickets
- Have 15% of tickets reserved for local fans at a discounted price
His video has already received millions of views online.
Time will tell if FIFA budge on their ticket model. Prices did drop during the 2025 Club World Cup held in the United States after demand didn’t reach FIFA’s expectations.
Fans who attempted to enter the ticket lottery on Wednesday were met with technical difficulties and frustration on FIFA’s website.
Standard. .
Looks like FIFA’s ticketing site crashed day one.Did it work for anyone? #WorldCup2026 pic.twitter.com/389KcGRpMi
— herculez gomez (@herculezg) September 10, 2025
Has this convoluted World Cup Fifa Visa presale thing actually worked for anyone yet?
I would love to buy tickets, but have to enter a waiting room for a lottery for a presale for a random draw for a CHANCE to be entered to win an opportunity to buy tickets pic.twitter.com/eu9zGPNHX1— Bijan Todd (@bijan_todd) September 10, 2025
I want World Cup tickets so I'm currently in a waiting room to join a queue to enter a presale draw to determine my eligibility to maybe buy tickets at an unspecified later date
what are we doing here @FIFAcom— J.D. Capelouto (@jdcapelouto) September 10, 2025
