World Cup (2026): record crowds, high prices, and a tournament of contradictions

The 2026 World Cup is a 48-team, 72-match tournament played across North America, and by the final Spain had beaten Argentina 1–0 in extra time. FIFA told BBC Sport that stadiums ran at 99.7 percent capacity and that total attendance reached 6,527,410, a record for the tournament. On U.S. television, Fox said the final drew 38.937 million viewers, with a peak of 51.685 million, making it the most-watched English-language soccer telecast in U.S. history; Telemundo's Spanish-language broadcast pulled in another 22.6 million, pushing the domestic audience above 60 million, AP News reported.

What it does well

The expanded format gave new nations their first appearance: Curacao, Cape Verde, Jordan and Uzbekistan all debuted, and FIFA's gamble that lower-ranked teams could compete paid off in stories such as Cape Verde holding Spain to a draw and taking Argentina to extra time in a 3–2 classic, with 40-year-old goalkeeper Vozinha becoming a breakout star, AP News noted. Larger traditional powers still dominated the latter stages, with England, Argentina, Spain and France ranked as the top four in the world, producing heavyweight semifinals. The United States found a moment too: ESPN reported that the Americans won three matches at a World Cup for the first time, scored a program-record 11 goals, and created scenes in Seattle where fans and players sang together after beating Australia. Canada won its first knockout game, and Mexico pushed England to the limit in what ESPN called a strong contender for match of the tournament.

Where it falls short

Access was the defining fault. Official tickets ranged from $140 to $2,735 for group-stage matches and up to $8,680 for the final, far above 2022 prices, and FIFA's resale platform let sellers list final tickets for almost $2.3 million while FIFA took a cut, AP News reported. Al Jazeera quoted working-class fans who felt priced out, and the resale issue prompted subpoenas from New York and New Jersey attorneys general over ticket pricing and seat-location accuracy, BBC Sport noted. Some logistical policies landed badly: supporters were briefly banned from bringing water bottles into stadiums, and high transit costs to New Jersey and Boston had to be reduced after backlash. The tournament also leaned heavily into commercial breaks, with mandatory three-minute hydration breaks used to run ads and extend broadcaster inventory; BBC Sport calculated that after removing those breaks, the average match length was 96 minutes 24 seconds, with only 58 minutes 15 seconds of ball-in-play time. Some fans saw this as an Americanization of the sport, alongside halftime shows and championship rings, Al Jazeera reported.

Who it is for

The World Cup is chiefly for fans who can afford premium prices, broadcasters seeking massive audiences, and advertisers: BBC Sport reported that a 30-second Fox Sports spot cost roughly $200,000 to $300,000, rising to $750,000 for U.S. matches and the final rounds. It is less welcoming to working-class supporters in host cities, many of whom found the sport's most accessible global stage suddenly out of reach.

Strengths

• Record attendance and near-full stadium capacity
• Historic U.S. television audience
• Memorable underdog stories from first-time qualifiers
• Strong knockout stages with top-ranked nations

Weaknesses

• Extremely high ticket prices and resale fees
• Mandatory hydration breaks disrupt flow and extend commercial time
• Logistics mishaps, including water-bottle bans and transit cost complaints
• Ticketing investigation and working-class fans priced out