World Cup tickets cost more than a mortgage payment in these five host cities

The World Cup starts on Thursday in Mexico City and fans are paying high prices to be part of the action. FIFA estimates that it is in between 5 million and 6 million fans will attend the six-week tournament, which will take place in 16 cities across North America.

Of the eleven U.S. host cities, five of which are the least expensive game tickets are more expensive than the typical monthly mortgage for that market, according to a new analysis from rreal estate research agency PropertyShark.

Fans attending games in Miami, Dallas, Atlanta, Kansas City and the World Cup Finals in New York can expect to pay the equivalent of a monthly mortgage payment or more for the thrill of seeing the action in person.

The World Cup only takes place once every four years and attracts enthusiastic fans from all over the world, which may be why ticket prices for matches often rise.

Competitions are also held in Canada and Mexico, and the other US host cities are Houston, San Francisco, Boston, Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Seattle.

Where the World Cup is more than a mortgage payment

Met Life Stadium in East Rutherford will host the cup final on July 19, with the cheapest tickets costing $7,256. In New York, the average monthly mortgage payment is $4,096, and the average monthly rent is $4,872, meaning it takes New York homeowners an average of 1.77 months in mortgage payments and New York renters 1.49 months in rent to attend the game, even in the cheapest places. And that’s just for An ticket.

While tickets to the finals may be the most expensive in East Rutherford, other cities are seeing match prices that reflect or exceed monthly mortgage and rent averages.

The cheapest tickets for the Dallas semifinals on July 14 cost $2,391, while the city’s average mortgage payment is $2,351 and the average rent is $1,578. Atlanta will host another semifinal on July 15, with the cheapest tickets costing $2,208. The average mortgage payment in Atlanta is $2,149, and the average rent payment is $1,814.

In Kansas City, where one of the semifinal games will take place on July 11, the cheapest seats cost $1,567, while the average monthly mortgage is $1,477 and the average rent is $1,342. And in Miami, where Colombia will face Portugal in a highly anticipated match on June 27, the least expensive seats go to $2,700. That’s roughly equal to the city’s average monthly mortgage payment of $2,731 and average rent of $2,696.

Also keep in mind that these prices will likely continue to rise as the Cup progresses and it becomes clear which countries will progress.

However, there are some cities where games are relatively more affordable. In San Francisco, for example, the cheapest tickets for a July 1 group game cost $682. Certainly not cheap, but considering the relatively high home prices in San Francisco, where the average monthly mortgage is an astronomical $6,842, and the average monthly rent is $3,635, it seems like a bargain.

More and more consumers are focusing their spending on the ‘experience economy’

“We are seeing unprecedented prices for events like the World Cup, because of supply and demand, to put it simply,” says Mark Sanaiha from Macallan Capital. “For years, the experience economy has outpaced wage growth, and younger generations have no intention of changing that trajectory.”

Driven partly by the COVID-19 pandemic and partly by the feeling that larger purchases, such as homes, are out of reach, younger consumers are choosing to spend money on experiences rather than things. A study from Mastercard found that consumer spending on “experiences” grew 65% between 2019 and 2023, while spending on goods only grew 12% over the same period.

However, Sanaiha believes that homeownership and “experiences” are not mutually exclusive. He recommends setting up a separate investment account or high-yield savings account specifically for the events you want to save for.

“Once you give it a purpose, you’re more likely to keep saving,” he says. “Automate it like a bill and save $X every month until you reach your goal.”

And as Sanaiha points out, tickets to the match are only part of what you might spend to attend the World Cup. There are also travel and accommodation costs.

“Instead of focusing on the ticket price, consider the total cost in your budget so that everything is accounted for. The key is to plan this as if it were a regular expense, but it is a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” he explains.

FIFA’s ticket prices have raised red flags among some U.S. officials

High prices are the reason why many fans have already given up their participation. A survey of 1,008 American football fans by LiveSportsonTV found that 52% of them had given up on purchasing World Cup tickets due to exorbitant ticket prices.

These prices, and their continued fluctuations, have prompted attorneys general in Texas, New York, New Jersey and California to investigate the pricing and packaging policies of World Cup tickets.

Attorney General of New York Letitia James released a joint statement with the New Jersey Attorney General Jennifer Davenport in May called for greater transparency from FIFA regarding its pricing policy.

“Being honest about ticket sales is not complicated,” Davenport said. “But FIFA has turned purchasing a World Cup ticket into a gauntlet of confusion, false scarcity and impossibly high prices – all at the expense of consumers and hardworking New Jerseyans.”