FIFA reported an attendance of 44,985 for Thursday’s World Cup match between South Korea and the Czech Republic in at Guadalajara Stadium (Estadio Akron,) but “swathes of empty seats around the stadium renewed concerns over ticket pricing and demand for the expanded tournament.” While more than 80,000 fans were at Estadio Azteca to watch the opener between Mexico and South Africa, the “optics of unoccupied rows” at the 46,000-seat stadium in Guadalajara, a city with a “deep-rooted football culture, have intensified criticism of FIFA’s commercial strategy” for the first 48-team World Cup. South Korea beat the Czechs 2-1 in the Group A match (REUTERS, 6/12).
Patches of red seats were “visible” throughout the South Korea-Czech Republic match, “particularly towards the pitchside VIP section at the centre of the east stand.” The affected areas “appeared to be in sections where ticket prices are said to have ranged between $400 for general admission and $5,000 for corporate hospitality.” The attendance figure “indicated almost all available tickets had been sold but potentially to individuals or touts unable to offload them” (London TELEGRAPH, 6/12).
SBJ will be tracking the attendance for all matches throughout the 2026 World Cup. Check out the latest numbers here.
