Through the round of 16 CANADA 13 Matches Total. = 625,567 Average = 48,121 MEXICO 13 Matches Total. = 789,946 Average = 60,765 USA 70 Matches so far Total. = 4,844,171 Average. = 69,202
The reduced capacities in the U.S. stadiums from their usual size didn't help. Many were only down a few thousand, but some by much more. AT&T was down almost 15,000.
Well, had the owners of said stadiums designed them with hosting internationa soccer in mind, they wouldn't have had to reduce capacity to host these games.
Official capacity is 56,000. They've had 61,000 for soccer but with FIFA's demands, hospitality, media etc I doubt it would be more than 56,000. BC Place capacity was reduced by 2,000 to accommodate FIFA.
I don't know if stadium design played a big part in the reduced capacities. The Meadowlands and Kansas City were about the same as for NFL games. Foxboro's stadium was the first NFL stadium constructed with accomodations for soccer games too. What is noticeable is that with twice as many teams playing in this World Cup compared to 1994, there were more media credentials, dignitaries, and FIFA officials to have special seating available for them.
For Dallas at least, it was largely stadium design. The stadium can fit over 100k (the Cowboys first game there drew 105,121) but around 20k of that is standing room, which FIFA doesn’t allow. I believe Los Angeles had to lift the field by around a foot or so to fit a proper soccer pitch, and that caused them to lose some seating capacity as well.
In some places, I've noticed what look like large in-the-stands press boxes. At AT&T, this was in the third deck, but it most places they were in the first deck. You don't see them very often, because they're on the same side as the main camera, but occasionally on shots from cameras on the other side you can see them. Maybe those are press boxes or maybe I'm mistaken, but if they are, they would cut into capacity.
You are correct, FIFA has a set minumum number of press boxess for eache game. And they take a lot of space
Yes I think the press boxes and friends of Herr Fuehrer Infantino accomodation take up a lot of space.
Attendance is gonna be huuuuuuuge!!! 🚨 HOT DOGS, BEWAREThe Glizzy King Joey Chestnut will be at Bank of America Stadium for our July 22 match 😮💨⏰ 8:15 PM ET🌭 $1 hot dogs🍻 $5 beers👀 A very special half-time🎟️ https://t.co/L1xCA4m1S6 pic.twitter.com/VIAvffi7XS— Charlotte FC (@CharlotteFC) July 10, 2026
The World Cup? Average price was $58, or $131 in today's money. But they didn't think anyone would turn out and sellouts weren't the norm at previous World Cups.
So even that the average attendance was higher in 1994 for comparison to the 3 Countries, tickets prices are ridiculous higher in 2026 even in Mexico with their economy were insane.
Yes it was a sticker shock even to us, and we are pretty used to inflation. And yet people turned out which means FIFA actually priced properly (unfortunately for those of us who can't afford to go to sports events any more).
Yeah, I'm sure the total revenue generated by somewhat lower attendance averages this time is much larger, per game, than it was in '94 (inflation-adjusted). Add in all of the extra games and the gap becomes vastly larger. I also assume that stadiums in 2026 have many, many more luxury suites than they did in 1994.
I estimated that the ticket revenue will be at least $4.6 billion. In 1994 if the average ticket price is correct, revenue would have been around $566k, or $1.2B in today's money.
Actually Forbes posted this: FIFA Metric Qatar 2022 Cycle - 2026 Cycle Projections Total rev $7.57B - $13B Broadcasting $3.43B - $4.30B Tkts/Hosp >=$1B - >$3B I think that's a huge underestimate
It was priced properly in that the market cleared (i.e., they sold all the tickets). I'm not confident they priced properly for maintaining long-term fandom. So much of this cup has been tainted by soul-sucking money grubbing, I wonder if people are as turned off as I am.