Trump says he would not pay $1,000 to watch US at World Cup

NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (AFP) — President Donald Trump said in an interview published Thursday that he would not pay the US$1,000-plus (over J$158,000) ticket price for the United States’ first World Cup match, piling pressure on FIFA over its sky-high costs.

“I did not know that number,” the billionaire Trump told the New York Post, adding, “I would certainly like to be there, but I wouldn’t pay it either, to be honest with you.”

US lawmakers and international fan groups have slammed FIFA over its pricing structure for the tournament that kicks off in June, with Football Supporters Europe branding it a “monumental betrayal”.

Trump appeared concerned that lower-income Americans — a key voting bloc for him — would be priced out of attending the World Cup.

“If people from Queens and Brooklyn and all of the people that love Donald Trump can’t go, I would be disappointed, but, you know, at the same time, it’s an amazing success.”

“I would like to be able to have the people that voted for me to be able to go,” added Trump, who takes credit for securing the World Cup for the United States during his first term as president.

Trump is close to FIFA President Gianni Infantino, who said on Tuesday that the governing body was obliged to take advantage of US laws that allow tickets to be resold for thousands of dollars above face value.

He said that FIFA received over 500 million ticket requests for 2026, compared with fewer than 50 million combined for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

Infantino says that 25 per cent of tickets for the group phase were priced at under $300 (J$47,000).

Fan groups have contrasted the tickets for this summer with the Qatar World Cup in 2022.

The most expensive ticket for the final in 2022 was around $1,600 (J$252,000) at face value, while in 2026 it is about $11,000 (J$1.7 million).