2026 FIFA World Cup megathread (2 Viewers)

[zoobird]

This is like the complexity of NBA salary cap rules...but if there were different sets of rules for different teams

 

[Desert_Power]

Do I start Lamar or Stafford this weekend!!

Wrong forearm

 

[Sand]

FIFA doing FIFA things - Ronaldo's 3-game ban for violent conduct has been reduced to 1 game (already served) and 2 games on super secret probation for a year. Thus he does not miss the 1st 2 games of the WC.

Cristiano Ronaldo clear to start World Cup after Fifa suspends two games of his ban

Cristiano Ronaldo will serve the final two games of his ban only if he is guilty of a similar infringement in the next year

www.theguardian.com

I wonder how much @The Gator had to pony up for the bribe.

I agree with this. That would have been a very harsh penalty for a guy who is historically well behaved.

 

[B Maverick]

Dear Football Fan,
Thank you for your interest in the FIFA World Cup 26™ Early Ticket Draw.
Unfortunately, your entry was unsuccessful, and you have not been assigned a time slot to purchase tickets in this sales phase. Participation in the Early Ticket Draw is subject to the Official Rules of the Early Ticket Draw.
Register your interest today to remain informed about future opportunities to purchase FIFA World Cup 26™ tickets. Each sales phase may be subject to varying purchasing procedures, payment options and ticket product offerings.
The application period for the next sales phase, the Random Selection Draw, will open after the Final Draw for the FIFA World Cup 26™, taking place on Friday, 5 December at FIFA.com/tickets. Stay tuned!
FIFA Resale/Exchange Marketplace:
If you are unable to secure tickets during the sales phases, you can browse available tickets in the FIFA Resale/Exchange Marketplace at FIFA.com/tickets. Please note that availability depends on fan listings and it is not guaranteed.
Sincerely,
FIFA Ticketing

 

[TennesseeJed]

FIFA doing FIFA things - Ronaldo's 3-game ban for violent conduct has been reduced to 1 game (already served) and 2 games on super secret probation for a year. Thus he does not miss the 1st 2 games of the WC.

Cristiano Ronaldo clear to start World Cup after Fifa suspends two games of his ban

Cristiano Ronaldo will serve the final two games of his ban only if he is guilty of a similar infringement in the next year

www.theguardian.com

I wonder how much @The Gator had to pony up for the bribe.

I agree with this. That would have been a very harsh penalty for a guy who is historically well behaved.

I am not around enough to know if this is serious or not.

 

[Sand]

Dear Football Fan,
Thank you for your interest in the FIFA World Cup 26™ Early Ticket Draw.
Unfortunately, your entry was unsuccessful, and you have not been assigned a time slot to purchase tickets in this sales phase. Participation in the Early Ticket Draw is subject to the Official Rules of the Early Ticket Draw.
Register your interest today to remain informed about future opportunities to purchase FIFA World Cup 26™ tickets. Each sales phase may be subject to varying purchasing procedures, payment options and ticket product offerings.
The application period for the next sales phase, the Random Selection Draw, will open after the Final Draw for the FIFA World Cup 26™, taking place on Friday, 5 December at FIFA.com/tickets. Stay tuned!
FIFA Resale/Exchange Marketplace:
If you are unable to secure tickets during the sales phases, you can browse available tickets in the FIFA Resale/Exchange Marketplace at FIFA.com/tickets. Please note that availability depends on fan listings and it is not guaranteed.
Sincerely,
FIFA Ticketing

The only thing FIFA has actually offered me were those stupid looking plushies. I guess at least this way we will know who will be where for the next set of tickets.

 

[Tick]

Hmm...

The interconfederation playoffs are played after the draw and protected against all possible chances of getting 2 teams from the same confederation. The two brackets are Congo-Jamaica/New Caledonia and Iraq-Bolivia/Suriname, so the first winner can't be in a group with Africa, CONCACAF, or New Zealand and the second winner can't be in a group with Asia, South America, or CONCACAF.

Since there are already 6 CONCACAF teams in the tournament, it means that no CONCACAF team can be in a group with one of the interconfederation playoff winners. Since Haiti and Curacao are also in pot 4, it means the US can only get Jordan, Cape Verde, Ghana, New Zealand, or a UEFA playoff winner from pot 4.

So by my calculations, we have a 100% chance of being in a group with Ghana again.

 

[Moe.]

I do kind of think that if we know the worst team in any given playoff path (will update the opening posts soon, honest) would be guaranteed pot 3 the path as a whole should be pot 3

I agree - I don't think this is really a huge deal either way. It's annoying me not to know but that's all.

 

[Desert_Power]

FIFA doing FIFA things - Ronaldo's 3-game ban for violent conduct has been reduced to 1 game (already served) and 2 games on super secret probation for a year. Thus he does not miss the 1st 2 games of the WC.

Cristiano Ronaldo clear to start World Cup after Fifa suspends two games of his ban

Cristiano Ronaldo will serve the final two games of his ban only if he is guilty of a similar infringement in the next year

www.theguardian.com

I wonder how much @The Gator had to pony up for the bribe.

I agree with this. That would have been a very harsh penalty for a guy who is historically well behaved.

Good one.

 

[The Z Machine]

Yup, I didn't get lucky in the latest lottery and neither did any of my 6 friends that applied. Demand must still be waaaay higher than the available slots.

The application period for the next sales phase, the Random Selection Draw, will open after the Final Draw for the FIFA World Cup 26™, taking place on Friday, 5 December at FIFA.com/tickets.

Hopefully supply is increased for this one. Its also after the draw so it wont be blind to the teams playing if you get a chance to buy tix.

 

[SwampDawg]

Same here on the no go on the last ticket draw. Pretty much just settled that I am going to have to buy in the secondary market. Then the question is do you take the cheapest deal once the draw is over even if it means seeing two lesser teams or just go all in on a round of 32 ticket that looks like you could get the US or another top tier team and bit ethe bullet and pay?

 

[Tick]

Yup, I didn't get lucky in the latest lottery and neither did any of my 6 friends that applied. Demand must still be waaaay higher than the available slots.

The application period for the next sales phase, the Random Selection Draw, will open after the Final Draw for the FIFA World Cup 26™, taking place on Friday, 5 December at FIFA.com/tickets.

Hopefully supply is increased for this one. Its also after the draw so it wont be blind to the teams playing if you get a chance to buy tix.

College buddy got 2 tickets in LA to the US's first game.

 

[QuizGuy66]

After seeing complete garbage from CBS sports golazo where they had an error laden sample draw I found this video which is excellent and follows the procedures and logic that FIFA have set out. When FIFA does it for real it is going to be a hoot and everyone will think they are screwed (when they actually are doing it correctly - there are just many constraints and their explanations will likely be so brief that folks will surely not get it).

Anyway this is great and very clear with the explanations as it goes: https://youtu.be/e6VjHkhSBPQ?si=tOgh0XWgwdbEkdOT

-QG

 

[QuizGuy66]

https://www.fifa.com/en/tournaments/mens/worldcup/canadamexicousa2026/articles/nearly-two-million-tickets-sold-third-phase-begins-11-december

Phase 3 tickets are being sold Dec 11-13

-QG

 

[zoobird]

I think my strategy is to aim to buy immediately after the draw and target any MetLife or Philly game that involves a ‘group of death’. That seems like the earliest and cheapest way to guarantee a game with two strong teams.