Initial World Cup ticket presale draws more than 4.5 million applicants worldwide
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More than 4.5 million fans worldwide applied to buy ticket during the 10-day 2026 World Cup presale draw that ended Friday, according to FIFA.
The presale, open to Visa cardholders over the age of 18, was the first crack at FIFA’s worldwide ticket lottery for the 48-team, 104-match World Cup that kicks off next June.
The highest number of applications came from the three co-host countries with the U.S. at the top of the list followed by Mexico and Canada. The rest of the top-10, in order, was made up of Germany, England, Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Spain and Italy.
FIFA did not provide specific numbers per country.
Applicants successful after the random draw will be notified via email starting Sept. 29 and given a date and time-slot to purchase tickets, subject to availability, with time-slots starting Oct, 1.
FIFA cautions that a successful draw application does not guarantee tickets will be available for purchase during the time-slot. Tickets for group-stage games start at US$60, but prices ride subject to demand.
Subsequent ticket draws will begin in October.
Fans can already buy hospitality packages. And Canadian fans will be able to apply for Canada Soccer’s allotment for Canadian team matches by joining the CanadaRed supporters’ group.
There are seven CanadaRed tiers, ranging from free to $5,000 a year. The higher the tier the more chances in the Canada Soccer ticket draw.
Canada Soccer has yet to announce timing of its draw.
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2025