For football fans, the majority of the build-up to the FIFA World Cup has centred on disappointment and shock more than excitement and delight.
Faced with wide-ranging issues – from expensive match tickets to logistical concerns – fans have directed their criticism towards the sport’s global governing body and local organisers in the three host nations: Canada, Mexico and the United States.
Political tensions have also been a major talking point, following US-Israel attacks on Iran that led to a regional conflict with global ramifications. The war has repeatedly raised questions about the US hosting Iran’s games, but FIFA chief Gianni Infantino has confirmed that Iran’s Team Melli will play. However, Iranian officials have asked the World Cup hosts to address their concerns.
For fans attending the tournament, which begins on June 11 and concludes on July 19, or watching the 104 matches from across the globe, these are some key talking points:
After spending nearly six months expressing their outrage at “extortionate” prices for World Cup match tickets, local fans rushed to book their spots at the tournament’s official fan festivals in host cities.
While an unregulated resale market and dynamic pricing in the US allowed some tickets for the World Cup final to be priced as high as $2m apiece – drawing sharp criticism from fans, politicians and football experts – the decision by some host cities to offer free-of-charge entry to fan festivals proved to be an instant hit.
Local festivals will offer fans a chance to enjoy match screenings in a vibrant setting, with access to food, drinks – and, at some venues, free musical performances – in comparison to exorbitantly priced match tickets and inflated commuter fares to venues.
In Toronto, the first batch of tickets to the official fan festival sold out within four hours. The next 220,000 free general admission tickets will be released on Friday, according to tournament officials in the city.
Meanwhile, in New York City, all five boroughs will host free fan zones after the city’s football-enthusiast mayor, Zohran Mamdani, announced that fans should not be asked to pay for such events.
In the neighbouring US state of New Jersey, a selection of games will be shown at the Sports Illustrated Stadium, with tickets costing $10.
The MetLife Stadium in New Jersey, renamed the New York New Jersey Stadium for the World Cup, will host the tournament final on July 19.
Atlanta, Philadelphia, Kansas City, Mexico City and Vancouver are among other host cities offering free general admission to fan festivals.
Los Angeles is charging $10 for admission to its official fan festival at the LA Memorial Coliseum, while free “fan zones” will be set up across local communities in Los Angeles County, home to several diaspora communities from World Cup participant nations.
A World Cup staple nearing its swan song is the Panini sticker book – a decades-old obsession for thousands of football fans, who engage in buying and trading stickers in a race to complete the album lined with stickers of top players.
The beloved sticker-trading tradition, with costs ranging from $1.50 to thousands of US dollars for sought-after pieces, is in full swing after the Italian company Panini released this year’s sticker book late in April.
With 48 nations heading for the tournament in June and July – the largest edition ever – 980 unique stickers, including 68 “special” ones, will be required to fill the 112-page album that will be available from Thursday.
The multigenerational fan-favourite hobby has evolved since its inception in 1970, with trading moving to WhatsApp groups, using the hashtag “Got, Got, Need” on social media, and with meet-ups in public spaces to trade Panini stickers.
For many children, completing the album is an even more cherished goal than their national team winning the World Cup, and parents, eager to please them, take over to help them meet the challenge.
A viral social media video recently showed Brazil star Marquinho’s children squealing with delight as young Spanish star Lamine Yamal emerged as one of seven cards from their Panini sticker pack.
Last week, FIFA released limited-edition collectible football shirts for each host city for a price of $375, a staggering amount that can compete with the expensive match tickets and commuter fares, leaving fans disappointed but not too surprised.
Football followers have taken to social media to criticise FIFA and accuse the sport’s global governing body of trying to profit from the World Cup more than caring about the fan experience.
Each one of the 16 host cities has its own shirt and, in a marketing ploy, only 999 shirts are available per city.
None of the four US shirts released last week – in Kansas City, Boston, Seattle, and New York-New Jersey – have sold out yet.
The flamboyant colours and graphics don’t seem to be everyone’s cup of tea, with one social media user asking to be paid to wear the shirt instead of spending money on buying it. However, there are some who consider them a piece of memorabilia.
Millions of football fans in the world’s two most populous nations may not be able to watch the World Cup due to a deadlock over broadcast rights in India and no official decision on the airing of the tournament in China.
There has been no deal announcement in China, which FIFA says accounted for 49.8 percent of all hours of viewing on digital and social platforms globally during the 2022 World Cup, as well as in India.
FIFA has concluded agreements with broadcasters in at least 175 territories globally, but it is unusual to not have a confirmed agreement in India and China with one month to go before the World Cup.
Some social media users seemed unfazed by a potential broadcast blackout, citing illegal streaming websites as their saviours, while others have cited the timing of the fixtures – some of which will kick off way past midnight in Asia – as a good enough reason to not watch the tournament.
Another first at this year’s World Cup will be its three opening ceremonies in each host nation instead of one mega event.
Mexico City will inaugurate the tournament with its opening ceremony on June 11, hours before the hosts take on South Africa. The performance will showcase international music artists such as Alejandro Fernandez, J Balvin and Tyla, and fans will have “an active role to play in the show”, according to FIFA.
American singer Katy Perry will perform in the US edition, while Canadian icons Alanis Morissette and Michael Buble will headline the opening ceremony in their home country.
South Korea’s Lisa is set to become the first female K-pop artist to perform at the World Cup opening ceremony – following in the footsteps of her male compatriot Jung Kook, who lit up the Qatar 2022 curtain-raiser with his tournament anthem, Believers.
Colombian pop icon Shakira, whose World Cup song Waka Waka became a global hit in 2010 and shone the limelight on pre-tournament performances, has unveiled a song – titled Dai Dai – for the 2026 tournament. But she has not been named among the opening ceremony performers.
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