Fans take one final swipe at FIFA as images of “terrible” £1m World Cup final seats spark outrage

FIFA's ticketing strategy has come under fresh scrutiny after images emerged of the 2026 World Cup final's most expensive seats.

Supporters were left stunned after seeing the view from hospitality packages reportedly sold for around £1 million at New York New Jersey Stadium.

£1 million seats at MetLife Stadium get the reaction you'd expect

Fresh images from inside MetLife Stadium, as it will now revert back to, have sparked widespread criticism after revealing the view from the World Cup final's most expensive hospitality seats.

The on-pitch seats, sold by FIFA hospitality partner On Location for around $1 million (£750k), were positioned at pitch level on the sunny side of the stadium, with guests even provided with sun hats.

However, rather than being impressed, many fans and journalists questioned the value of the premium experience, arguing that the location offered one of the poorest views in the entire stadium.

Sports business journalist Alex Silverman shared an image of the seats on social media, and football journalist Adam Crafton summed up his feelings by writing: “The game, gone gone, beyond gone, the gonest it will ever get.”

The view from the $1 million on-the-pitch seats sold by hospitality provider On Location for the FIFA World Cup Final at MetLife Stadium. It’s on the sunny side of the stadium, so sunhats are included. pic.twitter.com/CUhqgUQWGo

— Alex M. Silverman🏒⚽️ (@AlexMSilverman) July 19, 2026

Others described the view as “genuinely a terrible view”, while one supporter labelled them “the worst seats in the house” despite the seven-figure price tag.

These sentiments were echoed by many more, suggesting the irony was that the most expensive seats may actually provide one of the least enjoyable ways to watch the match unfold.

The criticism adds to a growing list of ticketing controversies that have dominated headlines throughout the 2026 World Cup, including dynamic pricing, soaring resale costs and record-breaking hospitality packages.

FGG says: The latest ticketing controversy was entirely predictable

The reaction says everything about how supporters have viewed FIFA's ticketing strategy throughout this tournament.

Charging nearly £1 million for seats that many believe offer an inferior view is an extraordinary proposition, and the backlash is entirely understandable.

At a tournament already dominated by criticism over dynamic pricing and accessibility, these hospitality packages feel absolutely shameless and only reinforce the perception that commercial ambition has too often been placed ahead of the supporter experience.

So it is difficult to see this as anything other than another own goal.