TA: FIFA starts selling World Cup stadium parking passes, some of which are more expensive than previous World Cup game tickets

November 11 According to TheAthletic report, FIFA is selling parking spaces near the 2026 World Cup stadium. The price of each parking space per match day is between US$75 and US$175, which is even higher than the price of some game tickets in previous World Cups.

The report stated that in the past month, as World Cup ticket sales began at record-breaking prices, FIFA also launched an "official parking website" for ticket holders, which is another platform for commercializing the 2026 World Cup.

Parking and traffic have long been a huge challenge for the 16 North American host cities of the World Cup: Many of the 11 U.S. metropolitan areas that will host the tournament lack the public transportation infrastructure typically used by sports fans in Europe and elsewhere because Americans have become accustomed to driving to games. All 11 U.S. World Cup venues are NFL stadiums, surrounded by parking lots of varying sizes.

However, throughout the World Cup, some of these parking lots will be behind security cordons, blocked off, or used for other purposes such as hospitality, so parking spaces will be relatively scarce. Traveling to stadiums could become a logistical nightmare, as happened to fans during the Club World Cup this summer.

Basically, FIFA is cashing in on this scarcity, not unlike what NFL teams and other American sports franchises do every week. FIFA's 2026 World Cup parking website indicates they will sell parking passes at most or all 16 venues, including those in Canada and Mexico.

Five of the 16 venues have started selling passes: at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri, Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, and AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, parking fees are $75 for the group stage and 1/16 finals, $100 for the 1/8 finals, $125 or $145 for the quarter-finals, and $175 for the semifinals or third-place games. At Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, the group stage is $115 and the 1/8 finals are $145.

This parking site is "powered by" JustPark, a technology company that helps venues and event organizers sell and manage parking spaces, and is available in Atlanta, Inglewood, CA, Santa Clara, CA, Seattle, Guadalajara, Mexico City, Monterey, and Vancouver The other stadium's page says, "Parking will be available soon!" Houston's page says "Parking inventory for this stadium will be available soon," while the pages for Toronto and East Rutherford, N.J. (home of the World Cup finals) say, "Parking is pending."

These prices do not include the cost of game tickets. Tickets for the match went on sale through a lottery last month and are priced several times the price of tickets to previous World Cups. In fact, just a parking pass for the 2026 World Cup will cost up to $75 during the group stage, which is more expensive than the third category ticket ($69) for any group stage match at the 2022 World Cup. (Adjusted for inflation, prices for Category III tickets are slightly higher in 2022.)

The prices for these parking passes are somewhat similar to those offered by NFL and NBA teams, but they are a first for FIFA, which appears to have never sold similar passes to the public at previous World Cups.

At the 2025 Club World Cup, also held in the United States, ticket holders can drive to a parking lot near Hard Rock Stadium and pay a $40 parking fee on the day of the game. At MetLife Stadium, parking in a nearby parking lot during the semifinals costs $65.

All 2026 World Cup parking passes are non-refundable, and it is unclear exactly where the designated parking spots will be. Miami's website lists parking spaces as being an 18-minute walk (0.91 miles) from Hard Rock Stadium, while stadium listings in other cities indicate "0 miles" from the stadium.

JustPark's customer support representative told TheAthletic via email: "Mile 0 is just a placeholder. Parking lots and spots will be allocated closer to the event date. Exact parking details and times will be confirmed via email prior to the game." It's also unclear how many parking passes will be available, whether fans will also be able to drive to the parking lot on game day and pay for parking, and what the overall parking availability will be.

The answers to these questions may vary from stadium to stadium. In Philadelphia, for example, the hundreds of parking spaces in Zone K just east of Lincoln Financial Field will not be used for parking. Meg Kane, executive officer of the Philadelphia World Cup Organizing Committee, said in an interview earlier this year: "There will be no cars there. It will be a completely activated space." And other areas, such as the parking lot next to Xfinity Mobile Arena, the nearby basketball and ice hockey stadium, will also be used for other purposes.

Meg Kane clarified: "Of course there will be parking lots open," but the settings and scenes will be different from a standard Philadelphia Eagles game. She said: "There will be Super Bowl-style construction inside Lincoln Financial Field and the stadium complex." She added that because many fans will come from out of town or abroad: "We will encourage In Philadelphia and other cities, shared mobility and shuttle buses will also be part of the overall transportation plan, and the number of cars will be limited. In many cases, specific plans are still being developed by FIFA and local authorities, and they will be finalized in the spring of 2026..

Stadium representatives told TheAthletic that cities, police departments, stadiums and other local entities are responsible for some of the logistics, but FIFA, as the owner and operator of the World Cup, controls the sale of tickets and parking passes, as well as the revenue generated from those sales. FIFA appears to have partnered with JustPark to sell and manage parking passes, with spokespersons for both parties not responding to emails seeking clarification on the partnership.

FIFA has previously defended their ticket prices, unrestricted resale platform, "right to buy" scheme and other business strategies, stating that the majority of their revenue is reinvested in the development of global football, namely that the funds are used to fund youth championships, allocated to FIFA's 211 members to subsidize projects and cover costs, and help other initiatives. FIFA expects the 2026 World Cup to bring in more than $13 billion in revenue, making it the most profitable sporting event on record.