Going to North America '26: tickets, accommodations, etc. (non-politics)

I'm trying to figure out why they thought a draw would be enough. I mean, a win sent them to the World Cup. A draw, maybe if everything else lined up, sent them to the Intercontinental playoffs. Baffling.

 

OK. But did you burn them during the conversion or few days before? I'm trying to maximize my chances of cheaper tickets before they sell out

 

My apologies for my now-deleted previous message with political undertones. Not sorry for that I said, just sorry I vented on this platform. I'm a bit stressed these days and getting tickets to this World Cup is one of the triggers. Won't happen again!

 

I burnt them when my time slot came up. I knew there would be a choice of categories available for me. I don't envy your position.

 

And BTW. FC only offering Cat 3 for RTB redemption for the Final is another slap in the face. You pay $5-10k for a RTB and get left with just a Cat 3.

I sort of accept Cat 3 for Toronto as all seats in that stadium are ok. But Cat 3 in MetLife will suck.

 

Scotland qualifying is a boost to ticket sales. A very long time since they last qualified and they will be very keen to go.

If Ireland make it through the Play Offs they will also be take lots of supporters.

 

You’re saying it would make sense to pay $5-10k for the opportunity to buy $7400 Cat 1 final tickets? I don’t follow the logic but I also don’t really understand the point of RTBs. They would’ve made sense if the face values aligned with the past prices ($500 Cat 3 to $1500 Cat 1). But otherwise I don’t get it.

 

Everytime I reopen this forum, my enthusiasm for attending this WC wilts further. FIFA and USA have seemingly colluded to remove all the fun out of it. I am a veteran of 6 WCs including 4 finals.

Someone wrote this on The Guardian UK website which pretty much sums it up:-

We can absolutely sure that this will be the least inclusive, most nauseating of any World Cup ever. Even if you have (foolishly) shelled out ludicrous sums of money to get to the MAGA land, got through immigration (many foreigners from shithole countries will not even make it past this stage) without having been incriminated by your phone for that gif some far left radical lunatic sent you of Trump ejaculating all over an illegal, paid premium rates for accomodation, somehow won the lottery for a ticket to a game in which your team might not even be playing (and paid in blood through the nose for it), forked out for car hire and parking, bought the overpriced steak and fries, been fleeced at the official merch store, drunk the official pisswater that passes for 'beer', before the fireworks, the cheerleaders, the red white and blue flypast, saluting the stars and stripes until, finally 'the game' begins. Sure by then you are going to be in the mood for Mexican waving and plastic seat mambo-ing whilst a gritty nil nil draw plays out before your glazed eyes in 99 degree heat, yep, it's all going to have been well worth it. An all-in experience the folks back home will be sooo envious of. Not.

 

Yes but FIFA are famed for taking an age and I mean an age to refund non qualified teams.

 

I woudl agree with all that except my prize for the most nauseating WC would go to Qatar.

 

There was the same “The sky is falling down” rethoric ahead of each of previous WCs: 1) Brazil – too much crime and robberies 2) dangerous to be in Russia – crimes, no human rights protection etc. 3) Qatar – no human rights protection, COVID-tests and possible quarantine if positive, expensive accommodation. Despite that, I attended all 3 from the 1st day till the last. And all 3 turned out to be superfantastic for me and I had a wonderful and unforgettable time there. In Qatar, for example, – no COVID-tests, cheap accommodation 5-10 minutes walking from Souq Wakif, its main spot. And now I’m planning my 4th WC in US. And I’m not that rich and have a rather limited budget. And I’m from a shithole country with huge US visa troubles. And I’m still optimistic and planning to be in US for almost all the duration of WC-2026. BTW, to my mind, the risks of this WC are much lower than of any of the 3 previous ones.

 

If you are time poor, and super rich (not me), and have on your bucket list to go to the WC Final with your wife and kids then you will want to go Cat 1. You will need the tickets sooner rather than later as you will want to let the kids' private boarding school know with plenty of notice, and make sure you can book four or five First Class fares from say Asia or the Middle East.

Given you are time poor you won't have entered in the lottery. Or if your secretary did for you, the likelihood of you getting a time slot is minimal. Then when you get lucky and get a time slot there are no Final tickets available anyway.

So, how to get a decent seat at the Final? Oh, let's go to the FIFA resale platform. Oops, Cat 1 start at $22,000 per ticket! OK, let's just buy Hospitality at that price. Nope, cheapest Hospitality is $25K (damn).

So, now an RTB with Cat 1 ticket which comes in under $15k looks interesting.

Anyway that's the logic of some of my super rich friends. BTW. I also have friends who have very little.

 

Still no email, I'm starting to wonder if my account is flagged or something. I know patience is key yet still....getting nervous a bit now!

Shame Montreal pulled out of hosting too, the Haitian community there would have gone wild.

 

They can put them in Ottawa. 2 hours drive

 

FIFA have been making it more difficlut for fans for decades. Nothing to do with the US. FIFA decided to host the world cup in 3 huge countries!! That's after doing it in Russia (No accommodation) and Qatar (a desert), both of whom bought the world cup by bribing officials. It's all about money and corruption. The US is a good place to hold a world cup and won't be as cut-throat as other world cups as there's more competition.

 

Yep but if you click on buy it only ever shows one ticket. I put my quarter final tickets up and they dont appear on the portal even tho i have an email saying they’re up for resale

 

Agree. Negativity and fear sells papers and creates clicks. That's the world we live in unfortunately. I had the time of my life in Qatar. Was my first WC that I could realistically attend given the family/work commitments the previous 4-5 tournaments. 95% of media I read was doom and gloom beforehand, however I went with an open mind determined to savour the football, finally watch the superstars live rather than on tv, make new friends, create some lasting memories and not to save the world. I think about it every day and have my framed Argentina v France framed WC final ticket on my bedside table and just stare at it when I'm feeling shit. We all need distractions, joy and fun in our lives. The excitement and anticipation of next year keeps me 'alive' even with how FIFA are trying their best to squeeze every cent off us. This is what the World Cup and football is for me.

 

If Italy qualifies, which pot would they be in?
Some sources say pot 2, others say pot 4...

 

Just sounds like a bloke who is going to be eating his stale pork pie in his empty flat apartment watching each England match drunk and wishing he were in the stadium. Only to see them fail again.

 

If any one was in doubt as to whether 40 tickets was a suitable number they should look at the Reddit site which is awash with people selling tickets. Not even for huge profit but because they have access to 40 they feel impulsed or repulsed to buy them all ahead of others.

 

It shows the cheapest ticket available. Is yours cheaper than the one that appears?

 

I find it funny that in Qatar the complaint from the UK media was there was no beer, now the complaint is that the beer isn't good enough (the United States, Canada and Mexico, historically difficult places to find good beer).

Toronto or Boston will be simple enough travels for them.

 

Not surprised. Seems like European national pastime is complaining. Every 5 or so posts on here is Euros complaining.