Parking Costs for Next Year’s World Cup Leave Fans Stunned

Spectators attending next year’s highly anticipated World Cup could face steep prices just to park their vehicles, with certain parking passes on FIFA’s official platform soaring as high as$175. The unexpectedly high charges, initially reported by The Athletic, have caused considerable surprise among fans in the car-dependent United States, which is co-hosting the tournament alongside Canada and Mexico.

For instance, a standard parking pass for the semi-final match scheduled for July 14 in Dallas was listed at a staggering$175. Meanwhile, parking for group-stage games was set at$75. In Kansas City, attendees for the July 11 quarter-final would need to pay$125for parking, with group-stage parking also priced at$75. This pricing strategy mirrors FIFA's existing dynamic ticketing approach, which previously saw initial group-stage seats offered starting from$60.

As of Tuesday, parking passes were only available for a limited number of the 16 venues spread across the three host nations. Notably, Mexico City, chosen to host the tournament's opening match, and New York/New Jersey, the venue for the final, had yet to make any parking options available to the public.

Despite these rising costs, demand for the event remains exceptionally strong. FIFA announced that it received over1.5 millionticket applications within 24 hours of launching the presale draw in September, a clear indication of the immense global interest preceding the tournament.