Trump Says He Would Not Spend Over $1,000 on US World Cup Opener

President Trump said he would not pay more than $1,000 to attend the United States men's national team's opening match at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, calling the current prices surprisingly high. In a phone interview with the New York Post conducted late Wednesday, Trump said he "did not know that number" for tickets to the June 12 game against Paraguay at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles.

"I would certainly like to be there, but I wouldn't pay it either, to be honest with you," he told the outlet. Trump added that he plans to review the pricing after expressing worry that it could exclude working-class fans who form part of his political base.

"If people from Queens and Brooklyn and all of the people that love Donald Trump can't go, I would be disappointed," he said. The president nevertheless described the tournament's ticket sales as an "amazing success," noting that more than 5 million tickets have been sold.

"I know that is extremely successful. Setting every record in the book. They've never had anything like it," Trump said.

The comments came one day after FIFA President Gianni Infantino defended the organization's use of dynamic pricing during an appearance at the Milken Institute Global Conference. " He argued that setting initial prices too low would simply lead to higher resale values, noting that ticket resale is permitted in the United States.

Infantino pointed to an estimated 500 million ticket requests received for the tournament and compared prices to those for major U.S. college and professional sporting events. FIFA set a base price of $1,120 for Category 3 tickets, the cheapest tier available to most fans, in December.

Resale listings for the final at MetLife Stadium have reached more than $2 million, while the average final ticket price stands near $13,000 compared with about $1,600 for the 2022 tournament. host cities have lagged behind initial forecasts. A survey by the American Hotel & Lodging Association found nearly 80 percent of hotels running below projections, with some operators in Kansas City reporting demand trailing even a typical June or July.

Industry officials attributed the gap to visa delays, high travel costs and geopolitical concerns that have limited international visitors. Domestic travelers have outnumbered those from abroad, and some hotels have described the tournament so far as falling short of expectations relative to earlier projections.

The broader economic impact of the tournament, co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, is estimated at $30 billion according to a FIFA-World Trade Organization study. The event features 48 teams playing a record 104 matches across 16 cities and runs from June 11 through the July 19 final at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

Trump helped secure hosting rights for the United States during his first term. He appeared with Infantino and the vice president in photos released alongside coverage of the interview. Critics including fan groups in Europe have filed complaints over the pricing, describing it as excessive.

Dozens of members of Congress sent a letter to Infantino in March accusing FIFA of price gouging and urging lower costs to improve accessibility.

“We have to look at the market – we are in the market in which entertainment is the most developed in the world. So we have to apply market rates.”