World Cup – Fans’ reluctance puts FIFA in difficulty
The United Kingdom failed to sell tickets for its matches during the World Cup in Qatar at the end of this year. An informed source revealed that the English Football Association has yet to sell tickets for the World Cup matches in England to members of the official fan club after failing to sell them to ordinary fans, according to the British newspaper The Times.
Fans abstinence
The newspaper reported that hundreds of tickets are still available for matches against Iran and the United States, although the allocation is only 8% of the available seat capacity at the stadium. The Qatari ticket sales are low despite the high demand from the public to buy tickets for local matches.
It added that demand for tickets for the tournament in Qatar is generally declining, and this is the same problem FIFA faced in selling tickets.
FIFA’s dilemma
International media have revealed that FIFA failed to sell tickets for the World Cup to be held in Qatar at the end of this year.
According to the British Guardian newspaper, FIFA announced the sale of only 800,000 tickets out of 3.1 million, a quarter of the total, explaining that four years ago when the tournament was held in Russia, 2.5 million tickets were sold several months before the tournament.
It added that the lack of demand for tickets was accompanied by uncertainty and anxiety within the International Football Federation. The newspaper noted that the public noticed confusion and chaos in Qatar with regard to the types of hotel rooms and their prices. Fans also found it difficult to find vacant rooms for $80, as the cost of all rooms below the average was about $200 per night.
The newspaper reported that these exaggerated prices and the failure of the Qatari portal to organize the rooms, their locations, and their prices led many to abandon the idea of attending the World Cup.
Desperate attempts
Qatari media announced the possibility of accommodating fans with Qatari families and residents in their homes instead of high-priced hotels, especially as the small number of hotels in Qatar represents another crisis where prices rise due to the limited supply of rooms.
Observers described such a step as desperate, revealing the extent of Qatar’s failure to organize a major World Cup-sized tournament and the lack of a strong infrastructure capable of hosting fans.
