15,000 England fans turn out for World Cup opener in Dallas
England fans are arriving in Dallas for their World Cup opening match against Croatia, with 12,000 to 15,000 supporters expected in attendance.
England fans have had to wait longer than other fans for the start of the 2026 World Cup campaign. On Wednesday, six days after the tournament begins, the Three Lions will take the field against Croatia in their opening match at Dallas Stadium. It is difficult to predict how many England fans will come to the stadium, with St George's Cross flags visible in the stands. The Official England Supporters Travel Club (ESTC) has sold its allocation of 4,022 tickets. Controversially, some tickets have been listed on FIFA's resale site at inflated prices. The number of fans who are traveling independently and are expatriates is virtually unknown. The United Kingdom Football Policing Unit (UKFPU) told BBC Sport that 12,000 to 15,000 England fans are expected at each group stage game. The UKFPU also reported that 89,000 World Cup tickets had been purchased by England fans. It covers all 104 matches and has no individual breakdown, whereas most fans will attend more than one match. But this number does not include supporters who have traveled to the United States without tickets. The highest point was in Germany in 2006, where the UKFPU estimated that 350,000 people traveled to watch games, but most fans spent time in fan parks. Only 4,000 fans traveled to Qatar over the past four years, while a figure of 20,000 to 30,000 is more typical. Ticket prices for the 2026 World Cup have been controversial from the beginning, with an England...
Fans called it a "betrayal" when it came up for sale to ESTC members in December. In Qatar, all prices for group stage matches were £68.50, £164.50 and £219. But for England's match against Croatia on Wednesday, tickets went on sale for £198, £373 or £523. The number of tickets available to ESTC was always going to be exhausted quickly. This left everyone else to look for a deal on FIFA's official resale site – which charges the buyer an additional 15%. Due to increased demand for the Three Lions there was a shortage of resale tickets for group games – and these were available at very high prices. Thomas Concannon, who leads the England fans group the Football Supporters' Association, told BBC Sport in April that many were waiting, hoping prices would fall. But this did not happen. There were 984 tickets listed for this game on Friday, now only 293 remain. The cheapest resale ticket in class one remains at around £1,310. But the demanding prices for the lower categories have increased. In April, a second class ticket could be bought for £874. On Tuesday, the best deal available was £1,254. Two months ago, a class three ticket was £682, but it is now £1,311. Perhaps most controversially, some tickets that were apparently sold to ESTC members have been re-listed at higher prices. These appear on the FIFA resale site as the 'Supporter Standard' and 'Supporter Premier' categories, which were allocated to national associations. As of Tuesday evening, two 'Supporter Standard' tickets were listed. mother of one
The price of the match is £3,192 – adding FIFA fees it becomes £3,671. This is almost 10 times the price of the ticket purchased for £380. The second has an asking price of £1,178 – this rises to £1,355 when FIFA fees are added. Several tickets listed and then disappeared in the last 24 hours. It is impossible to know whether these tickets were sold at the asking price, or whether they were removed from sale. Two were in the 'Supporter Premiere'. The first was listed at £1,898, which is £2,183 including FIFA fees – so four times the £523 price. Another was listed for £100 more. To prevent ESTC members from reselling the cheapest £45 tickets made available by FIFA, the Football Association decided not to release them until Monday evening. BBC Sport has observed that none of these "supporter entry" tickets have come up for resale. Some stamps are also listed at the Croatia end by their national association allocation. Many fans have been enjoying the atmosphere in Dallas for a few days. The general feeling is that going to the World Cup in the United States will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience. But the costs are still heavy. “There are eight of us together and we paid about £850 each,” Michael said, sitting outside a bar. "That's a lot of money, you could get a season ticket for it." Their group could have been larger, but the cost of flights, accommodation and tickets discouraged many. "I've heard that a beer in stadiums is $20, and food is over $30," he added. "It really feels like you're being robbed. But
This is the World Cup. I just hope when we come back in 2030 things are back to normal and a little more sensible." Guy and James arrived from Newcastle on Saturday, but discovered their hotel reservation had been canceled and their tickets had fallen through. "We don't have tickets but obviously we were still coming," James said. "We'll be in the fan zone, the bar, and with England fans." Guy added: "We'll try to get some tickets but very little hope. Is. We'd spend £400 to £500 if we could get them." While the England fans were around, it was not the familiar sight of the Three Lions taking over the bar. "I'm skeptical about how many [England fans] will be at the game but we'll have to see," Ian said. "It's probably not going to be the same for the Euros at home or for South Africa. It's a pity because it's a people's game and I think 80 to 90% of the people are out of the game. I really hope this doesn't set a precedent.
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