More than 1.5 million ticket applications from fans in 210 countries have been received by FIFA within 24 hours of the presale draw for the 2026 World Cup being launched, the governing body of world soccer said on Thursday.
The extraordinary global demand for the tournament came primarily from the United States, Mexico and Canada, followed by Argentina, Colombia, Brazil, England, Spain, Portugal and Germany.
The response highlighted the international appeal of the expanded 48-team tournament which will be hosted by Mexico, Canada and the U.S. and will feature 104 matches across 16 host cities.
The draw is open until 11:00 ET (17:00 CET) on September 19, and the time of entry does not affect fans' chances of securing tickets.
Successful applicants will be notified via email starting September 29 and given designated time slots to purchase tickets beginning October 1.
Tickets will start at $60, yet dynamic pricing will be in operation during the first phase of ticket sales with fans paying different prices according to market demand. Additional ticket sales phases are scheduled to begin in October.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, who last season guided the club to their first Premier League title in 22 years, has signed a new contract until June 2030, the English champions announced on Wednesday.
Former Spain midfielder David Silva, who spent 10 years at Manchester City, has returned to professional football at age 40, joining Hong Kong Premier League club Sha Tin on Wednesday.
Cristiano Ronaldo doesn't think his days playing for Portugal are over despite saying that the head coach lied to him about playing time and the superstar striker bolting from the national squad last week.
Lionel Messi has delivered one last master class in blue and white on Tuesday as Argentina's captain brought the curtain down on his extraordinary 21-year international career by scoring one goal and setting up two others in a 3-0 friendly win over Benin.
World champions Spain have recovered to beat Croatia 2-1 on Tuesday, with Mikel Merino scoring twice to extend their unbeaten run to 42 matches and seal a place in the Nations League quarter-finals on the final night of the fourth round of group-stage action.