Latest phase of World Cup tickets go on sale with fans now able to apply for specific matches

By JAMES ROBSON AP Soccer Writer Soccer fans were able to apply for tickets to watch specific matches at next year s World Cup for the first time on Thursday as FIFA opened up its latest phase of sales Following last week s draw for the tournament which will be co-hosted by the United States Canada and Mexico an updated schedule has been published That means fans know when and where the likes of Lionel Messi and Argentina will play Previous ticket ballots were blind as the qualification period had not even been completed and the draw was yet to take place Now participating nations have been placed in groups with their paths through the tournament determined For instance Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo could go on to meet in the quarterfinals in Kansas City if both Argentina and Portugal top their respective groups Not that fans are guaranteed to get tickets to the games they apply for The third phase of ticket sales is called the Random Selection Draw and fans will be informed if they have been thriving in the latest lottery From left Alexi Lalas and Ronaldo listen as FIFA President Gianni Infantino and host Andr s Cantor applaude as Francesco Totti and Hristo Stoichkov look on during the match schedule reveal for the soccer World Cup in Washington Saturday Dec AP Photo Chris Carlson How to apply for tickets in the Random Selection Draw The draw opened Dec at ET GMT and closes Jan FIFA says ticket applications can be made at any point during this window and the timing of entry will not impact the chances of success Fans can apply via FIFA s website for a maximum of four tickets per household per match and a maximum of tickets throughout the tournament Fans will need a FIFA ID to apply for tickets and can pick which matches and which pricing category they want to apply for There are four categories with the best seats in Category and Category seats somewhere around the top of stadiums Effective applicants will be notified by email in February and charged automatically Prices FIFA stated in September that ticket prices would range initially from for group-stage matches to for the final Those prices are subject to change and in a large number of episode likely to soar as FIFA utilizes dynamic pricing for the first time at the World Cup The last time the U S hosted the World Cup in prices ranged from to In Qatar in prices ranged from around to when ticket details were communicated Tickets for the final at MetLife Stadium on July are already going for in excess of on secondary resale sites For this tournament FIFA has also set up its own resale platform where it charges a fee based on the total resale price A monumental betrayal FIFA allocates of tickets to national associations for games involving their company to sell to traveling fans Prices for those tickets began to circulate on Thursday In a list published by the German soccer federation prices ranged from - for varying group stage games The lowest price for the final was and the highest was Related Articles Egypt and Iran complain about planned World Cup Pride match in Seattle World Cup to include -minute hydration breaks in each half of all games not only in hot weather World Cup final will be an afternoon match at MetLife Stadium allowing prime-time viewing in Europe Tyler Adams sets bold goal of farthest US World Cup advancement New England joins global celebration for FIFA World Cup draw The prices were described as extortionate by fan organization Football Supporters Europe This is a monumental betrayal of the tradition of the World Cup ignoring the contribution of supporters to the spectacle it is FSE disclosed in a comment Last chance FIFA reported that closer to the tournament any remaining tickets will go on general sale on a first-come first-served basis It did not reveal a time frame for the release of those remaining tickets AP soccer https apnews com hub soccer