A few years ago, the World Cup was awarded to "North America" - with some games in Canada, some games in Mexico, and some games (including the late rounds and finals) in the United States.
Plans were made. Contracts were signed. Stadiums were updated. Sponsors got involved. Lots and lots of money changed hands to get ready for the event. Its huge, and is the ultimate in "inclusion" with people travelling from around the world to see their team play!
And then, we had an election, and the idiot in chief started to take over the event to a degree. He invited the head of FIFA to visit and told him he might move the games around at his discretion. Word is that the head of FIFA was quite put off by that. The contracts, the money, everything would be a huge headache.
Sponsors reacted by making a decision to spend more of their energy on games hosted in Mexico and Canada. Of course, there were rumblings and quiet talks about maybe moving some games out of the US altogether.
And with the stupid rules around visas, and the "enhanced security" this might be wise, according to some. Especially after what we saw at the Club World Cup earlier this year - what happened in Miami was a disaster. They certainly couldn't have a repeat of that.
Anyway, flash forward to a few weeks ago. The head of FIFA took on a new tactic: just kiss the ring (or more if necessary). Flatter the guy. Show him the trophy. Tell him how great it is to have games in his country. You know, all the things you say to a dictator.
And see if you can, get him to just accept the games where they are, and to remind him about the spirit of international competition. Let people from other countries come for two weeks.... and then, the hook: FIFA will be awarding the first ever "FIFA Peace Prize" during the draw ceremony. It will go to the person who really embodies the spirit of cooperation.
"Will it be Trump?"
"Wait and see!"
Never forget that while its nice that this is an international competition, its also about the money! Getting T-rump on your side ensures that money flows with no need to breach any contracts.
And to that end, they announced ticket pricing. They promised some tickets would be under $60. And apparently they did make a very small number - across all venues for games in the first round - available to fans. They were immediately snapped up and resold for way over that value.
And meanwhile, the actual ticket prices are shown below, compared with the pricing in 2022 in Qatar.
Oh and then there's parking. While these games will take place at large NFL-sized stadiums, most of the parking lots will be closed off, and attendees will be directed to park in places literally miles away from the venues, at a starting price of around $175 per car. Of course, these parking spots must be purchased in advance and to this point, the venues haven't announced how many spaces will be available, or where they will be.
And in many cities, public transportation really isn't an option, so its unclear who can afford to go to the games and how they will get there.
I admit that I was excited when I heard the world cup was coming to south Florida, and the notion that I could go see a game locally sounded great. At a starting point of $100, which still seems high to me, maybe I would go.
But good luck finding tickets under $400! That's the going rate apparently for any ticket to a first round game here. No thanks.
