Soccer fans have accused FIFA of a “monumental betrayal” after latest prices for World Cup tickets began to circulate on Thursday.

The governing body allocates 8% of tickets to national associations for games involving their team to sell to the most loyal fans.

And a list published by the German soccer federation revealed prices ranged from $180-$700 for varying group stage games. The lowest price for the final was $4,185 and the highest was $8,680.

Those group-stage prices are very different from FIFA’s claims of $60 tickets being available, while the target from United States soccer officials when bidding for the tournament seven years ago was to offer hundreds of thousands of $21 seats across the opening phase of games.

Fan organisation Football Supporters Europe (FSE) described the current prices as “extortionate”.

“This is a monumental betrayal of the tradition of the World Cup, ignoring the contribution of supporters to the spectacle it is,” it said in a statement.

The English Football Association shared pricing information with the England Supporters Travel Club (ESTC) on Thursday evening, which showed that if a fan bought a ticket for every game through to the final it would cost just over $7,000.

FIFA said in September that tickets released through its website would initially range from $60 for group-stage matches to $6,730 for the final. But those prices are subject to change as it adopts dynamic pricing for the first time at the World Cup.

FIFA tickets are available in four categories, with the best seats in Category 1.

In the price list published by the German federation, there were only three categories.

The lowest priced ticket was $180 for Germany’s opening group game against Curacao in Houston. The lowest price for the semifinal was $920 rising to $1,125.

The FSE called on FIFA to immediately halt ticket sales via national associations “until a solution that respects the tradition, universality, and cultural significance of the World Cup is found”.

FIFA launched its third phase of widespread ticket sales Thursday, with fans now able to apply for specific matches for the first time through its “Random Selection Draw”.

Following last week’s draw for the 2026 tournament, which will be co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, an updated schedule has been published.

That means fans know when and where the likes of Lionel Messi and Argentina will play. Previous ticket ballots were blind as the qualification period had not even been completed and the draw was yet to take place.

Now participating nations have been placed in groups, with their paths through the tournament determined. For instance, Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo could go on to meet in the quarterfinals in Kansas City if both Argentina and Portugal top their respective groups.

Not that fans are guaranteed to get tickets to the games they apply for.

The draw opened December 11 at 11am ET (1600 GMT) and closes January 13, 2026.

FIFA says ticket applications can be made at any point during this window and the timing of entry will not impact the chances of success. Fans can apply via FIFA’s website for a maximum of four tickets per household per match and a maximum of 40 tickets throughout the tournament.

Fans will need a FIFA ID to apply for tickets and can pick which matches and which pricing category they want to apply for.

Successful applicants will be notified by email in February and charged automatically.

The last time the US hosted the World Cup in 1994 prices ranged from $25 to $475. In Qatar in 2022 prices ranged from around $70 to $1,600 when ticket details were announced.

Tickets for the final at MetLife Stadium on July 19 are already going for in excess of $11,000 on secondary resale sites.

For this tournament FIFA has also set up its own resale platform where it charges a 15% fee based on the total resale price.

FIFA said that closer to the tournament any remaining tickets will go on general sale on a first-come, first-served basis.

It did not reveal a time frame for the release of those remaining tickets.

Source: AP

Former world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua will fight YouTube star Jake Paul in a professional bout next month.

Britain’s Joshua, the 36-year-old former two-time unified heavyweight champion, will take on the YouTuber-turned-boxer at Kaseya Center in Miami.

The fight, which will be streamed live on Netflix, will take place on 19 December and consist of eight three-minute rounds.

Joshua, who weighed more than 250lbs during his previous three fights, must come in at under 245lbs and both fighters will wear regulation 10-ounce gloves.

The bout is a replacement fight for Paul, who was scheduled to take on Gervonta Davis in an exhibition earlier this month before it was cancelled because of a lawsuit filed against Davis by his ex-girlfriend.

“This isn’t an AI simulation. This is Judgment Day,” said 28-year-old Paul.

“When I beat Anthony Joshua, every doubt disappears, and no-one can deny me the opportunity to fight for a world title. To all my haters, this is what you wanted.”

Speculation that Joshua would fight Paul was initially denied, but he will return to the ring against the American for the first time since being knocked out by then IBF champion Daniel Dubois in September 2024.

“I took some time out and I’m coming back with a mega show. It’s a big opportunity for me,” said the 2012 Olympic gold medallist.

“Whether you like it or not, I’m here to do massive numbers, have big fights and break every record whilst keeping cool, calm and collected.

“Mark my words, you’ll see a lot more fighters take these opportunities in the future. I’m about to break the internet over Jake Paul’s face.”

Paul became famous via a YouTube account that now has close to 21m subscribers.

However in recent years he has switched his attention to boxing and has primarily fought as a cruiserweight at about 200lbs.

He weighed in at the heavyweight weight of 227.5lbs when he beat former world champion Mike Tyson in an exhibition fight in 2024 that attracted 108m viewers.

Paul then beat former world middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr, 39, via a unanimous points decision, a victory that earned him the number 14 spot in the WBA cruiserweight rankings.

But Paul – who has a 12-1 win-loss record, with seven knockouts – has only boxed a total of 70 rounds since turning professional in 2020.

Joshua (28-4, 25 KOs) by contrast, has 12 years of experience as a professional and has boxed more than 160 rounds.

“It’s an incredible day,” Nakisa Bidarian, CEO of Most Valuable Promotions, told Sky Sports.

“Jake thought of this in March of this year and said, ‘I want to fight Anthony Joshua’.

“People laughed then. In July the question was asked, ‘do you see this happening?’ – and the plan was to do this in March or April of 2026. Plans changed and Jake stood up and said, ‘I want to face Joshua now’.”

Joshua’s decision to take the fight raises question marks about his future in top-level boxing, while Paul was accused of making a “mockery” of the sport in the past when he likened himself to Muhammad Ali.

“This is a huge step up for Jake Paul,” said promoter Frank Warren.

“It’s dangerous for Jake – this is someone with vast experience he’s fighting. Jake’s had some fights, but not to this level.

“But I’ll tell you who it’s more dangerous for – it’s AJ. If he gets caught – he’s done. I’m not saying that’s going to happen but if it does, he’s finished. AJ’s vulnerable, I’ve always thought he’s been vulnerable.

“People will pay to watch it; it’s a car crash and people will tune in to see a car crash.”

British heavyweight Moses Itauma, who trains with Joshua, said the bout was a “terrible” idea and Paul should “fire his advisers” as it was “100%” dangerous for the YouTuber to step into the ring.

“You don’t mess around with things like this,” Itauma told BBC Radio 5 Live.

“I like Jake Paul and I’m not saying he shouldn’t take the fight. I just feel like he needs to weigh up the outcomes. If I was Jake Paul’s brother, I’d be very worried.”

The 20-year-old also said he does not blame Joshua for taking the money to fight Paul rather than worrying about whether it will affect his boxing legacy.

Itauma added: “Your kids can’t eat legacy. If you’re talking about getting paid hundreds of millions of dollars to fight a YouTuber, why not?”

Source: BBC