World Cup ticket silence ‘unacceptable’ – disabled charity

Fifa’s failure to address concerns over access to tickets for disabled supporters at the 2026 World Cup is “unacceptable”, a charity has said.

Disabled fans face paying more to attend games as there are no tickets available to them in the lowest-priced tier of the general allocation.

Personal assistants have been told they will have to pay the full price of a ticket, rather than receive a free or concession rate. Fifa says it cannot guarantee that they will get a seat next to the disabled fan they have taken to the game.

There is also uncertainty over how many tickets will be made available to wheelchair users and the number of easy access spaces.

Level Playing Field says it “raised serious and legitimate concerns” with Fifa more than three weeks ago but has not received a response.

It has now written to national governing bodies and the secretary of state for culture, media and sport.

“This ongoing uncertainty over accessible ticketing is unacceptable,” said Tony Taylor, the chair of Level Playing Field.

“The current situation appears to expect disabled fans to gamble on cost and access.

“Planning, personal assistants and pricing are vital considerations for disabled fans, as repeatedly shown in Level Playing Field Annual Fan Survey data.

“Restricting access to the lowest pricing tiers and charging for personal assistants, add unavoidable, additional, disability-related costs to attending.

“Instead of addressing the issue and communicating with supporters effectively, the current response has only been to delay and ignore.”

Fifa has been approached for comment.

World football’s governing body has been heavily criticised for its high pricing structure at this summer’s event in the United States, Mexico and Canada.

It eventually bowed to pressure by releasing a small number of “more affordable” $60 (£45) tickets to general fans for all 104 matches. But there has been no such flexibility for disabled fans.

England supporters have not taken up their full general ticket allocation for the final and semi-final because of the cost. Around 90% of tickets for the final made available to the FA cost £3,094.