PRIYA COOPER / SPORTS EDITOR

MAXIMILIANO ACOSTA / ASST. SPORTS EDITOR

Recently, ticket prices for the FIFA World Cup and 2028 Summer Olympics  have been surging rapidly, pushing out many  buyers from accessing the lower-priced tickets. Buying an online ticket comes with the stress of website spikes and price fluctuations in real time. 

The FIFA World Cup is being played  throughout   North   America starting in June 2026. Tickets were first available via Presale Draw and general application window on Sept. 10, 2025. 

FIFA’s pricing has been controversial since September, when the global soccer governing body  revealed  that  it  would  use a strategy called dynamic pricing for World Cup tickets. Dynamic pricing means that prices are not fixed, but rather they fluctuate based on real-time factors. Prices can go up or down depending on how many people want something and when they want it.

FIFA has repeatedly justified its ticket pricing, arguing that it aligns with North American standards and reflects “extraordinary” demand. However, fans have strongly pushed back against the organization.

USD senior and photographer for The USD Vista, Hailey Howell shared her experience trying to buy tickets. 

“I didn’t have any issues getting into the queue, but when I looked online during my time slot the prices were much higher than expected,” Howell said. “Also some events that I wanted to see, like gymnastics, weren’t available at all which was disappointing. So I actually didn’t end up purchasing any tickets.”

A few weeks ago FIFA entered the final “Last Minute Sales Phase,” where  fans  were given one last chance to be able to purchase tickets on a first-come, first-served basis, without entering a lottery or receiving special access. 

On April 1, thousands of fans tried to access FIFA’s ticket portal, but many were left waiting for hours before gaining access, while some were mistakenly directed to a separate, code-protected sale and had to rejoin the queue. FIFA did not clarify how many tickets are available in this sales phase. They also failed to explain why the link sent to fans initially led to the wrong ticketing page showing “No products available,” causing some fans to miss their chance to enter the correct queue before it was fixed.

Some  are running into similar issues when purchasing tickets for the upcoming 2028 Summer Olympics, which are to be based in Los Angeles. Presale for summer Olympic tickets launched this past Thursday. By the next day, ticket buyers reported that all gymnastics events were marked “unavailable,” and even the opening ceremony had been filled. They  observed  that the few available tickets to swimming and athletic events such as track and field started at $1,116.27 per seat, which did not reflect how tickets were advertised. 

Ticket sales are being met with backlash after policymakers   such  as  LA      Mayor Karen Bass made comments about affordable pricing and making these games different  by  being  inclusive  for all.

USD sophomore Luke Maguto  explained whether  or  not the  rising ticket prices affected his purchasing decision.

“The rising ticket price of course makes me want to buy the tickets or less, but I love these events so I feel very drawn to buying them anyways,” Magturo said. “I try not to break a certain limit to spend no matter what.”

Magturo shared his most recent ticket purchase online. 

“My dad and I just got Olympic tickets for 2028 in LA and we had to get in the queue two years early and buy the tickets within two days,” Magturo mentioned. “The prices were not terrible, ranging from 150 to 300 and we got tickets for volleyball and boxing without a struggle. That was through the Olympics system. If you buy tickets on reselling websites, they’ll usually be more expensive. For example, I’m looking for World Cup tickets right now and SeatGeek are reselling the cheapest game for around $300 and the highest for thousands. I’m probably gonna go to the cheapest game even though it’s gonna be a team that I don’t care about.”

Both organizations discussed having sales as low as $28 for the Olympics and $60 for group-stage matches in the World Cup. SD sophomore Ravi Bedi said he considered attending a World Cup match earlier this year with his family but ultimately decided against it due to the overall cost of the trip.

“The ticket wasn’t too expensive, but finding a place to stay made the trip cost more than I expected,” Bedi said. “Since I live in Idaho, trying to get to a game in Kansas City was rough. I didn’t see it as worth it. The ticket pricing was good, I guess, but not for the game I was going to. I’m pretty sure it was a France game, but in the end it just didn’t feel worth it.” However, most fans  have only seen record  high-prices and struggles throughout the entire process. 

USD students look to purchase FIFA World Cup and Summer 2028 Olympics tickets. Photo courtesy of  Kyra Lefebvre