Missed the World Cup Ticket Lottery? Here's How to Find Tickets
The FIFA World Cup is coming to North America for the first time since 1994, creating an enormous demand for tickets. Fans are eager to secure trusted tickets early so they can make other plans and arrangements for attending the World Cup. Whether you’re traveling to attend or watching in your hometown, we understand the value of planning early for an event as significant as this.
While the first round of ticket sales via the ticket lottery has ended, there are other reliable ways for fans to secure tickets before the biggest event in soccer comes to North America.
World Cup 2026 Ticket Lottery
The first way for soccer fans to score World Cup tickets was via the World Cup ticket lottery. Applications for the World Cup lottery closed on January 13, 2026, with over 500 million submissions received. These half a billion fans were then notified via email on February 5, 2026, if they were chosen for tickets.
If you opened this email to disappointment, rest assured knowing that you’re in the majority. With 500 million ticket requests and only 4-5 million granted, most fans did not score tickets on this first go-round. Luckily, the lottery was not the only way fans can score tickets to the FIFA World Cup 2026.
FIFA’s Last-Chance Sales Phase
FIFA will be releasing tickets on a first-come, first-served basis closer to the actual tournament. Waiting for the release of these tickets is an option for those looking to secure World Cup tickets; however, ticket availability and seat selection may be limited. Waiting for these tickets comes with the risk of competing with the hundreds of millions of other fans who missed out on tickets during the lottery phase.
While this is a viable option, first-come, first-served tickets always come with the risk of losing out on the seats and tickets you want most. There is another way to score tickets without the waiting and hassle.
World Cup Tickets on the Secondary Resale Market
The most immediate and hands-off approach to securing tickets to the World Cup 2026 is purchasing tickets through the resale market. Tickets from a secure secondary marketplace give you the freedom of seat selection and purchase security without the uncertainty of waiting.
Purchase Tickets Now, Save Time Later
If you missed out on the lottery and don’t want to wait for FIFA’s last-chance tickets, you’re in luck. The resale market allows fans to purchase tickets now, saving them time and uncertainty waiting for more tickets to be released directly by FIFA.
Not only is the resale market a convenient approach to purchasing, it is currently the only way to purchase tickets to the World Cup. If it’s important to you to get tickets now and plan early for the World Cup, resale tickets are the way to go. Purchase your tickets now from a secure reseller, and use the rest of your time leading up to the match planning travel, accommodations, and any other aspects of your World Cup attendance.
How Ticket Resellers Score Tickets Early
At Event Tickets Center, we’re able to sell World Cup tickets because we’re confident in our ability to get you the tickets you want. We work with thoroughly vetted ticket brokers who have a track-record of scoring even the most hard-to-get tickets. We’ll deal with the hassle of landing the tickets you want, while you’re able to make your other plans and arrangements for the World Cup, like housing and transportation.
Understanding the Delivery Delay for Resale
Purchasing tickets via resale saves you time; however, it’s important to understand that your actual tickets will not always be delivered immediately. While your tickets are confirmed and protected by a 100% Buyer Guarantee from the moment of purchase, they will only be in your hand once FIFA releases them. Rest assured that the reseller is obligated to transfer your tickets as soon as they have them, but expect this to come with a slight delay. We monitor this fulfillment and ensure that the hand-off happens correctly to ease your stress before the big event.
Which World Cup Matches are Available?
Tickets for all World Cup matches located in the US and Canada are available on our site. From highly anticipated matchups like Colombia vs Portugal in Miami to still undetermined later-stage matchups like the World Cup final, you can secure tickets for hot rivalries and unexpected matchups alike.
For more information on the most anticipated World Cup matches, explore our World Cup Top Matches Guide.
Ticket Reseller Trustworthiness
You may wonder if tickets from resellers are trust-worthy, and that’s understandable. For an event as significant as the World Cup, you need to trust that your tickets are reliable. This is why it’s so important to purchase tickets from a trusted resale marketplace, like Event Tickets Center, where fans are protected with a 100% Buyer Guarantee.
Tickets purchased from Event Tickets Center are eligible for a 100% refund if they arrive invalid, late, or are not delivered at all. If the event is cancelled and not rescheduled, you will receive a full refund minus any delivery fees.
Over 7 million satisfied customers have purchased from Event Tickets Center thanks to our 100% Buyer Guarantee, our verified selection of vetted and trusted ticket resellers, and our secure checkout protocols to keep your information safe and secure.
