When Ty Malugani of Alabama first heard the 2026 World Cup would be hosted across North America, he pictured a family pilgrimage: taking his four young children to their first tournament and passing on his love of soccer. That excitement has since given way to frustration and, ultimately, a decision not to go.
The initial barrier was cost. Even the cheapest seats for a U.S. match would push his family’s ticket bill to nearly $1,600, while tickets for the U.S. opener reached more than $6,700 for distant seats. Compounding the price shock was a complex FIFA ticketing system full of lotteries and multiple seat categories that many fans found frustrating to navigate.
For Malugani the final straw came when FIFA presented President Trump with a new FIFA Peace Prize, an honor the organization said recognizes people who have helped unite others around peace. Malugani interpreted the move as a sign FIFA was courting powerful figures rather than prioritizing ordinary supporters. He says the decision made him feel like “we’re not going to care about the fans, or the event itself,” and pushed him away from attending.
FIFA has responded by pointing to what it calls “unprecedented” demand, citing hundreds of millions of ticket requests. But other signals suggest demand — at least for early-round matches and from overseas visitors — has been softer than some anticipated.
Jan Freitag, who analyzes hospitality trends for CoStar Group, expects interest to grow later in the tournament for the knockout rounds and final. Still, he notes the opening stages have underperformed initial projections. Freitag attributes that to several factors converging: the war in Europe, high airfares, steep ticket prices, and the fact that early group-stage games may be less compelling for casual travelers.
Hotel bookings have also fallen short of expectations in some host cities. Rosanna Maietta of the American Hotel & Lodging Association says FIFA canceled a large number of previously reserved rooms, a reversal from the usual pattern in which FIFA initially overbooks and then scales down. That, combined with fewer international reservations, has made hotels cautious as the event approaches.
Beyond cost and logistics, political and security concerns are keeping some fans away. Kieran Maguire, a Liverpool-based professor of soccer finance and a longtime World Cup attendee, says recent U.S. policies have left him feeling unwelcome. He points to new rules allowing immigration officials to review visitors’ social media histories and broader travel restrictions that affect dozens of countries, including four teams in the tournament. Recent incidents of violence linked to immigration enforcement in some U.S. cities have also raised safety concerns for would-be attendees.
The White House and FIFA have pushed back on the criticism. A White House spokesperson praised the 2026 World Cup as likely to be “one of the greatest and most spectacular events in the history of mankind” and said officials are focused on ensuring a safe experience for visitors.
Still, many supporters who had dreamed of introducing the next generation to live World Cup soccer are resigned. Malugani says walking away from the chance to share the atmosphere and passion of a live match with his children is the hardest part. “I love the sport and I want future generations to love the sport,” he says. “Hopefully things can turn around, but right now it feels like a missed opportunity.”