The 2026 World Cup is barely two matches old, and already a familiar, awkward image is back in the conversation: rows of empty red seats at a stadium that was supposed to be full. Tuesday’s Group A opener between South Korea and the Czech Republic in Guadalajara drew a lively, vocal crowd — but also thousands of vacant seats, visible across wide shots of the Estadio Akron. The optics were hard to ignore.
FIFA responded quickly, defending its attendance data with a standard explanation. A spokesperson said the official numbers count every fan who scanned a ticket and entered the stadium footprint, not how many happen to be sitting in their assigned seat at a given moment. The organization added that many ticketed spectators were seen standing in concourses rather than taking their seats during the match.
That explanation didn’t land well with fans and critics, who have spent the past several months watching a slow-motion controversy over FIFA’s ticket pricing strategy. The federation cut prices on some games in recent weeks, but as of tournament kickoff, roughly 180,000 tickets were still listed on FIFA’s official resale portal. For the final, the cheapest standard ticket is reportedly pushing $5,785 — and some high-demand seats have hit five figures.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino acknowledged the pricing debate in his pre-tournament press conference, defending the dynamic pricing model by arguing the World Cup commands a bigger audience and higher demand than events like the NBA Finals. He compared the situation to the famously expensive Knicks-Spurs series, insisting that global demand justifies the premium. FIFA also claimed it had received over 500 million booking requests, a staggering figure — though that claim does little to explain the empty seats visible on opening day.
Politicians in New York and New Jersey have opened a formal investigation into complaints that fans were left confused by opaque online queues and unclear final prices. Many buyers reported joining virtual waiting rooms without knowing how long they’d have to wait or what the eventual cost would be if they reached the front.
The match itself was far from a dud. The Czech Republic struck first through Ladislav Krejci, but South Korea answered with an equalizer from Hwang In-beom and a winner from Oh Hyeon-gyu. The atmosphere inside the stadium remained noisy and engaged, especially from Korean supporters who traveled in strong numbers. Yet the lingering visual of empty seats — in just the second game of a 104-match tournament — raises one of the most persistent questions FIFA has yet to answer: If demand is truly historic, why are so many seats still empty?
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